Jannik De Bruyn delighted the home crowd as he posted a sensational round of 64 to secure a four-shot lead after a fog-affected day one of the European Open.
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There was a delay of three hours due to fog early in the morning at Green Eagle Golf Courses but when play got under way, German De Bruyn birdied six of his first seven holes to race into a commanding lead on the formidable Porsche Nord Course.
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Another birdie at the 11th hole saw him move further clear on home soil, before back-to-back bogeys followed at the 12th and 13th. The 24-year-old bounced back brilliantly to finish with four consecutive birdies to get to nine under par and move four clear of England’s Laurie Canter and Welshman Jack Davidson, who signed for five under par rounds of 68 in the second event of the European Swing.
De Bruyn, who earned his DP World Tour card through Qualifying School last year, is now targeting a maiden victory on home soil around one of the longest courses played on the DP World Tour, this year measuring 7,882 yards.
Defending champion Tom McKibbin, American Sean Crocker, Finland’s Lauri Ruuska, Dane Niklas Norgaard, South African Ockie Strydom and English duo Garrick Porteous and Dan Bradbury share fourth position on four under par.
Ten players are a shot further back in 11th, including South Africa’s Dylan Frittelli, American Johannes Veerman and Denmark’s Marcus Helligkilde, who have two holes remaining as round one was suspended due to darkness.
Player quotes
Jannik De Bruyn: I can’t explain what happened out there but I was just in the moment and the birdies kept coming. I was hitting the ball well in the right areas and my putting was great.
I was six under through seven and didn’t really believe it. I hadn’t been playing great coming into the week, so I had no expectation. I was just looking to take it shot by shot and focus on hitting draws. It worked out well for me today.
There were plenty of spectators out there for me today and I always enjoy playing in front of my home crowd. The more birdies I was making, the bigger the crowd got which was quite funny. I’m proud to play such a good round here.
Laurie Canter: I started off nicely today and I hit a lot of fairways and greens. I think I hit every fairway and green for my first 11 holes which was so important round here because the rough is up. The greens are soft but can still be quick if you get the wrong side of the pin.
This is definitely a ball-striking course and if you’re out of position then it can be very hard to make par or even save bogey. I have actually changed a lot of clubs in my bag this week which people may find mad because of my finish last week. I have actually put a whole new set of irons in this week with some new shafts and my swing feels comfortable enough to do that. I’m feeling good but I would like to keep improving on my shirt game and putting.
Jack Davidson: It was a good round today. Obviously, this course is very long and the delay meant it was a long day. I’m happy to finish round and I’m pleased with five under par. I saw this course on Tuesday and it’s quite similar to one of the courses I play back in Wales. It sets up very long and it was very wet today, so I quite liked the look of it.
I holed a few putts today which was nice because the putter has been pretty cold recently. There were four par-fives on the back nine and it was great to take advantage of them today. It’s about keeping the mistakes off the card round here and pick up birdies where you can.
