Russell reined in

Scotsman Raymond Russell’s hopes of topping the leaderboard after the first day of the KLM Open in Holland were dealt a blow after he was overtaken by Austria’s Markus Brier and Dutchman Guido van der Valk.

Russell was first man out at 7am and posted the score everyone had to beat with a three-under-par round of 67 with six birdies and three bogeys.

With scoring proving difficult on the toughened-up Hilversumsche Golf Club course it appeared for a long while that the 32-year-old from East Lothian would remain in pole position.

However, Brier had four birdies in an outward nine of 31 while van der Valk was bogey-free, also with four birdies, to the 15th.

Defending champion David Lynn was well placed at two-under but bogeyed the 17th and 18th to slip back to level par.

Russell, having struggled in recent weeks, was pleased with his morning’s work, which began with a 4.35am alarm call.

“I’ve played badly basically as I’ve missed the last six cuts but I tend to start playing at this time of year so hopefully this is a start,” said the Scot, whose only European Tour victory is the 1996 Air France Cannes Open.

“I’ve got a good record around here and I enjoy it.”

After a five at the first, Russell raised his game considerably and none of his six birdie putts were from a distance greater than 15 feet.

A scrappy finish threatened to ruin his good work as a missed fairway at 17 cost him a shot before a wayward drive into the trees up the last saw him eventually rescue his par five with a 15-foot putt.

“I was leaking oil at the end,” he admitted afterwards.

Lynn also faded fast and, after missing the 17th fairway, was in even more trouble on the par-five last after driving into trees on the right and finding his ball resting against a log.

Having hacked out just a few yards to the thick rough, he pulled his third shot across the other side of the fairway and left his approach just short of the green, from where he two-putted for a level-par round of 70.