Brolly good show from Hooper

BMW PGA Championship rookie Mark Hooper (above) shone on a severely rain-affected and gloomy opening day at Wentworth as Denmark’s Thomas Bjorn set the pace with a blistering round of 10-under.

The Rayleigh Club professional posted a one-under-par 71 on his West Course debut to leave him full of confidence of making the cut at the European Tour’s flagship event.

Hooper got off to a blistering start easing to three-under after four holes, however two suspensions due to the threat of lightning played a role in handing shots back as rhythm and concentration were both hit due to the combined two-and-a-half delay.

In all, Hooper conjured up five birdies, at the first, second, fourth, 12th and 14th with bogeys at six, seven, 11 and 15 before negotiating the final three holes in regulation – for a successful opening round.

“It’s been a brilliant day,” he said with a beaming smile.

“I got off to a great start. I was three-under through four with a couple of good birdies, including a lovely long putt on the first.

“I let a couple of silly bogeys go through mis-clubbing and going slightly long to give a couple back. But I dug back in and made a good birdie on 14 and after a dropped shot at 15 I parred my way in for a great day.

“I felt very comfortable out there. Coming to an event like this, it’s the first time I’ve been here, you’re not really sure how you’re going to feel. I felt at ease from the start and it was a bit of dream to get off to the start I did.

“It’s been a long day and quite tiring. The rain caught me out a bit as that was when I made my bogeys. But I stayed relaxed and went round alright in the end.

“If I play like that tomorrow I should be fine. I’ve had some great putts today but left a few short ones out there today. I know there’s a good score out there and the greens are softening up so I’m just looking forward to getting going.”

Fellow PGA in England (East) compatriot Ian Ellis (above) hailed his return to Wentworth as ‘awesome’ as he revealed an intriguing sub-plot to the week’s proceedings with Jason Levermore.

Ellis, PGA Professional at Great Yarmouth & Caister Golf Club, finished on level par with a mixed bag of five birdies, three bogeys and double bogey, as he targets ‘unfinished business’ with the Surrey course.

“Awesome,” was Ellis’s, succinct summary.

“It’s so good to be back here as I’ve not been here for six years and as I’ve said in the past I’ve got some unfinished business here.

“I’m out here trying to enjoy myself and see what happens. It could have been a lot better but equally it could have been a lot worse.

“It has been a long day. You get some momentum going and then you stop and try and get it back and then it just goes again.

“The highlight for me was I putted well today. I got a 30 footer on the second for birdie and that really got me going as I then had a good 10 footer at the next for par. I putted and chipped well but didn’t drive that well until the last hole. I didn’t have my rhythm today but coming down the last I found it and if I get the rhythm tomorrow and put well then I should shoot in the 60s.

“I’m not going out there to protect tomorrow. I’ve never shot in the 60s here and that is one of my goals.”

However, there’s also the prospect of lining his pockets with a few quid from Levermore that is also keeping his mind focused.

The pair have a bet on the number of birdies they sink this week and Ellis added: “Me and Levermore are playing at £2.50 a birdie and I’m £7.50 up before he teed off.

“That for me is a goal. We played together at the play-offs for a couple of quid and you focus on that rather than the bigger picture.”

It was a case of what might have been for record-breaking PGA Assistants’ champion Matthew Cort and former Tartan Tour No 1 and playing partner Craig Lee during rounds that lasted close on seven hours because of the delays caused by the weather.

Cort, who finished on three-over, was left to rue a double bogey on the par four 15th after over-cooking his approach and subsequent escape from a bunker.

“I made a mess of the 15th after driving into the middle of the fairway,” he admitted. “So to finish on three-over was a bit disappointing. I came here to do well, not turn up for a laugh.

“But I’m not out of things so I guess three-over is OK, especially as the wind made it very tricky. Another plus point is that we completed the round, which is a good thing.”

Cort also had an explanation as to why the early starters such as Bjorn (below) scored so well.

“I played it on Monday and the greens were very firm and they were hand-watering them while I was going round,” he explained. “Then it rained last night and that softened the course up. That’s why the scoring has been so good. Ten-under was probably not on at the start of the week.”

Lee, who flew the flag for PGA pros with a first round of two-under described Bjorn’s 10-under as ‘phenomenal golf’.

However, had it not been for an inauspicious finish he would have been six strokes adrift of the leader as opposed to eight.

“The conditions and breaks made it mentally tough and physically demanding,” he said.

“And there were a couple of slack shots towards the end. I dropped one at 17, and missed a six-foot birdie putt on the last. What could have been a great score ended as a good score. “

Fellow Scot Chris Kelly, one of the 10 PGA qualifiers via the Titleist PGA Play-Offs, was playing steady golf until the final pair of par fives. Sitting comfortable at one-over-par, the Cawder professional walked off the 17th with a double bogey before adding a quadruple bogey at the last to take him to seven-over. The frustration was etched all over his face as he handed his card in.

The day was also one of disappointment for Welshman Liam Bond (Marriott St Pierre), who has been left without a licence to thrill for the rest of the tournament after being disqualified for signing for a wrong score.

Ireland’s Damien Mooney (Ballyliffin), Scottish duo Greig Hutcheon (Paul Lawrie Golf Centre) and Graham Fox (Clydeway Golf) plus English pair Jason Levermore (Channels) and Matt Ford (CK Group) will return in the morning to complete their first rounds.

Levermore was the pick of the bunch having moved to three-under-par after 11 holes.

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