Henrik Stenson
Paul Dunne got 2017 off to a positive start when he fired five birdies in a six hole stretch and signed for a four under par 68 in the Bay Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship.
The Greystones golfer, fitter and stronger than ever following some hard work over the winter, will be disappointed that he failed to build on his hot stretch and then bogeyed the 17th.
But making birdies at the eighth, 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th was still a good start to the year and while's he's four strokes behind European No 1 Henrik Stenson, who shot 64, Dunne was tied for seventh in the clubhouse at Abu Dhabi Golf Club.
Stenson came into the event with little preparation but showed few signs of rust as he went out in six under 30 on the back nine and then birdied his 16th and 18th holes for an immaculate 64 and an early, two-shot lead over Martin Kaymer, Oliver Fisher, Kiradech Aphibarnrat and Marc Warren.
"I think I scored a bit better than what I played, but I kept it under control somewhat and hit a couple of close iron shots and made the putts," Stenson said. "And yeah, it wasn't too much stress out there."
The reigning Open champion, Stenson confessed he comes into the event under-prepared but determined to build on his major winning exploits in 2016.
"I just want to keep on developing my game," he said. "Keep on working hard on that, and come into the majors well prepared and well rested and try and put myself in contention. I feel like I can get the Claret Jug some company if I do that. I'm going to try my hardest."
On his build up and his opening round of the year, he added: "I didn't do much practice before I left, but the practice I did do was pretty good. I was quite amazed how good the game felt coming into today.
"But again, I feel like I scored better than I played. Main thing was the putter was working out nicely and had a chip-in and a couple of up-and-downs around the greens.
"So didn't put myself in too much trouble and yeah, 64, it's the second best score I've had here in Abu Dhabi. Good start to the week.
"I got off to a hot start there. I made a good birdie on 10. I hit a good shot into 12 and birdied that one, and the same on 13, so I started off with some nice birdies. Then when I did miss on 14, I chipped in from about 30 yards or so. I mean, there were a couple of bonus birdies out there.
"The main thing is you take advantage of them and keep it going and no dropped shots, which I think is probably a first in the first round of a season for me."
As for the changes to the European Tour's membership and Ryder Cup policies, Stenson was generally positive.
"The Tour is in a pretty good place and we're working towards making it more interesting, attracting young fans and players to the game," he said.
"I like quite a lot of the initiatives. I might be a bit conservative on some of the stuff out on the golf course during competitive play. I think I prefer to leave that one alone as much as we can.
"But otherwise, I listen to a lot of music when I practice back home. Golf is a lot about rhythm, and you definitely get that if you got some nice beats going when you're down there practicing, so I'm all for that."
US Open champion and world No 3 Dustin Johnson and defending champion Rickie Fowler both signed for a level par 72s.
Masters champion Danny Willett shot a two over 74 while Ireland's Darren Clarke was among the later starters.
from News - Irish Golf Desk http://ift.tt/2jCdhA6
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