Leading players struggle for form

Two weeks after winning his first European tour title for 10 years in quite amazing fashion, Paul Broadhurst returned to action today and shot 80.

But the Portuguese Open champion was not the only one of the leading names to suffer when the Jazztel Spanish Open began at a windswept San Roque.

Paul McGinley, at 64th in the world the highest-ranked player taking part, took 76, Volvo PGA winner Scott Drummond 77 and rising star Nick Dougherty had a 78.

Six players shared the clubhouse lead on two under 70 as the round drew to a close.

Peter Gustafsson, winner of the tour qualifying school at the same course in November, was joined by fellow Swede Peter Hanson, Italian Emanuele Canonica and Spaniards Santiago Luna, Jose Rivero and Diego Borrego.

Out on the course, though, Scot Steven O’Hara was on the same mark with three to play.

Broadhurst, back as a winner three years after having to fight for his future at the qualifying school, described it as “just one of those days”.

He, McGinley and Paul Lawrie were paired together and dropped eight strokes between them in the first three holes.

But while Lawrie fought back for a level par 72 Broadhurst shanked a four-iron out of bounds en route to a quadruple bogey eight at the 442-yard eighth – his 17th – and three-putted the next for a closing bogey six.

“If I’d finished four-four instead of eight-six the round would have been OK, but it’s not easy out there,” he added.

McGinley, meanwhile, repaired the damage of a double-bogey seven on the 10th to stand level par with five to play, but then dropped a further five shots in the next four holes.

It was all a bit reminiscent of the bizarre climax in Portugal, where Broadhurst thought he had blown his hopes with a last-green bogey before Lawrie triple-bogeyed the 71st and Barry Lane, leading by two, finished with a quadruple bogey nine.

Lawrie, who had three birdies in the final four holes, commented: “Hitting my second shot out of bounds was not the best of starts, but you’ve just got to stick in there when things like that happen.”

Finishing second in Portugal the way he did would have been a crushing blow for some, but having gone so long without being in contention the 1999 Open champion was able to look on the bright side.

“It was hugely positive – it’s impossible to take any negatives out of it at all,” he added. “I’ve not been there for a while and to give myself a chance was a hell of an effort.

“And today was right up there too.”

England’s Roger Chapman became just the third player in tour history – after Sam Torrance and Eamonn Darcy – to clock up 600 starts, but a three-over 75 was not quite the way he hoped to celebrate.