Dean Burmester made an excellent start to the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open by taking a share of the lead in round one on Thursday.
The South African made an elegant start to his week and was cruising through his round with the greatest of ease.
Burmester rolled in four birdies on the front nine before adding three more in three successive holes to surge to 7 under par.
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But, a nasty double bogey on the 17th hole saw him drop down with his margin and in the end had to settle for a 5-under-par 65.
He occupies top spot alongside English duo Aaron Rai and Jordan Smith, who shot respective rounds of 65 themselves.
The trio is, however, closely followed by another Englishman, Toby Tree, who finished the day just a further stroke back on 4 under.
Last week’s winner at the Open de Portugal, Garrick Higgo, also made a composed start to his challenge by carding a 2-under 68 for his opening round, as did fellow South African Justin Harding.
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Wilco Nienaber could only manage an even par day in Northern Ireland, while George Coetzee finished the day on 1 over par.
Jbe Kruger struggled throughout his opening round and ended with a disappointing 3 over with Haydn Porteous a stroke back on 4 over.
