Sergio off the pace in Spain

Sergio Garcia was today battling to live up to his billing as pre-tournament favourite in the first round of the Spanish Open in Valencia.

Garcia, joint eighth in the Masters last week after sharing the lead with an opening 66 at Augusta, found himself four shots off the pace at El Saler approaching the end of his round.

And it could have been worse for the world number 13 if not for holing from 25ft for par on the sixth after duffing his chip from short of the green.

Starting on the back nine, Garcia birdied the 11th and after giving the shot straight back on the next, birdied the par-five 15th to be out in 35, one under par.

A birdie on the par-five third from seven feet briefly took Garcia to within one shot of the lead, only for him to run up a double-bogey on the next after pulling his tee shot into the trees and then seeing his pitch plug in a greenside bunker.

Another pulled tee shot on the fifth prevented Garcia from reaching the green in two on the 526-yard par-five, the 33-year-old having to pitch out of the rough and settle for a par.

But he was grateful to escape with a par on the sixth when his approach came up short of the green and he duffed his pitch, holing from long range to remain level par.

That was four behind the early clubhouse target set by Chile’s Felipe Aguilar, who had carded six birdies and two bogeys in a 68, with Ireland’s David Higgins a shot behind after a bogey-free 69.

Former world number three Paul Casey, now 144th in the rankings, was alongside Garcia on level par after 14 holes, the Englishman going to the turn in two under but then dropping three shots in four holes before a birdie on the fifth.

Defending champion Francesco Molinari, struggling with a back injury which forced him to miss the pre-tournament pro-am, started with a triple-bogey seven and was six over after 11 holes, but birdied the third and fifth to lie four over.