Fab four sparkle in the sunshine

All four Scots helped themselves in an orgy of scoring on the first day of the European Tour’s Canary Islands Championship, none shooting higher than a four-under 67.

Richie Ramsay and Perthshire’s Calum Hill shot six-under 65s but they were only good enough for a share of sixth place as the field, familiar with the Golf Costa Adeje course in play for the second week in a row, had their way with the seaside track.

Italy’s Francesco Laporta was one of several players to threaten a 59 but ended up leading with just a nineunder 62. Spain’s Alfredo Garcia-heredia, who played with Hill, was one of four players two shots back on seven-under.

“I didn’t actually realise how well he was playing, I just knew that we were both going along quite nicely, but I think it does help generally,” said Hill. “Edoardo (Molinari) shot just one-under but he absolutely flushed it all day, so all that continuous motion forward in the group is good for everyone.”

The difference for Hill to last week – when he missed the cut – was with the short stick.

“My putting compared to last week was pleasing,” he said. “I only had one three putt today and many of them last week.

“My form is just a combination of what my coach and I have worked on since lockdown of last year. We made a lot of changes and a lot of hard work went in. It put me in a position where this year it’s just maintenance as opposed to massive changes.”

Ramsay had bemoaned his form on the greens last week as well but tee-togreen he was one of the leaders, and it showed again with a bogey-free 65.

Connor Syme was just a shot behind after a 66, but he felt it could have been so much better.

“It’s not very often you come off the golf course disappointed in shooting a 66,” he said. “I was absolutely flying to be sixunder through eight holes and with a bogey. It was a funny day, five-under is a good start but it could have definitely been a lot better.”

Syme eagled the first two par fives he played with a chip-in at the 11th and a 40-footer for his three at the 13th.

“It’s important to take advantage of the par-fives when there are six parthrees,” he added. “There’s a premium on those holes for your iron shots, as they are certainly the challenging holes and then you have the opportunities on the long holes.

“It could have been extra special as I hit 9-iron on (the short) 14th, and while I didn’t catch all of it, it hit the pin and stopped just half-a-foot from the hole, so it could gone in. It was just a fun little spell of golf.”

Grant Forrest had a chance to match Syme playing the last but dropped a shot to finish with a four-under 67.

Meanwhile, on the Challenge Tour Craig Howie continued his strong start to the season in the Dimension Data Pro-am, with an opening 65 to put himself in a share of fourth.

Blairgowrie’s Bradley Neil and fellow former Perth and Kinross county player Daniel Young opened with two-over 74s.