Garcia off to good start in bid to retain title

Tournament host Sergio Garcia made an excellent start to his bid for a third straight win in the weatheraffected Andalucia Masters.

Garcia has finished outside the top 10 just once in 13 previous appearances at Valderrama and an opening 68 left him two shots off the clubhouse lead held by England’s Ashley Chesters.

A thunderstorm delayed the start of play by two hours and another in early afternoon led to a further suspension of play which meant half the 126-strong field did not complete their rounds.

“It was nice,” Garcia told Sky Sports after his first round since becoming the top points scorer in Ryder Cup history in Europe’s victory at Le Golf National in Paris.

“Obviously I didn’t feel as smooth when I came back from the break.

“I hit a great shot on six, unfortunately missed that birdie putt and then hit a couple of loose shots, but any time you shoot under par on this course, it doesn’t matter the conditions, I’m obviously happy about it.

“To be here at my favourite golf course, where I’m a member from last year onwards, it’s great fun and hopefully we’ll get a little bit lucky. ”

Chesters carded six birdies and a solitary bogey in a five-under-par 66 which gave him a one-shot lead over France’s Gregory Bourdy, with Australia’s Jason Scrivener alongside Garcia on three under.

Bourdy needs to finish joint second or better to retain his European Tour card after failing to record a top-30 finish all season.

The 36-year-old is 179th on the money list, with the top 116 at the end of the week securing full playing privileges for next season.

Scotland’s Richie Ramsay does not need such a good finish as he currently lies 124th on the standings, but posted an opening 69 despite a double-bogey seven on the 17th, his eighth hole of the day.

“I didn’t know what way to approach this week because I’ve never been in this position before,” Ramsay said.

“So I spoke to my daughter (Olivia was born in 2016) and she is happy and healthy and as long as she is, dad can go and play golf.

“If I play to my capabilities I can definitely get into contention and think about winning, not just keeping my card.”

Connor Syme will return today to play the 18th hole at two over while Bradley Neil is on the same mark after 13 holes.