Teenager Rory McIlroy produced easily the lowest round of his professional career yesterday – a dazzling 63 to lead the European Masters in Switzerland.
“About time,” said the Northern Ireland youngster, who goes into the second round three clear of Welsh pair Garry Houston and Kyron Sullivan, and Argentina’s Julio Zapata. Gary Orr led the Scots challenge on 67.
“Golf’s such a fickle game. I could go and play better than that and shoot level par.”
The eight-under-par performance beat by three the 19-year-old’s previous best on the European Tour. It was three outside the lowest seen at Crans-sur-Sierre, perched 4,500ft in the Alps.
In 1971 Italian Baldovino Dassu became the first Euro-pean Tour player to return a 60 and in 1992 Jamie Spence equalled that to win the title from a record 10 behind on the last day.
After that, however, Seve Ballesteros controversially changed the greens and made the course much tougher. The official record for the new layout is the 62 of Eduardo Romero eight years ago.
McIlroy burst on to the circuit in sensational style last year. After being leading amateur at the Open and then earning a Walker Cup cap he finished third in his second pro event.
That had many people wondering if he could become the youngest player in Ryder Cup history, but the story of his season so far has largely been one of disappointment.
He is 89th on the European Tour Order of Merit and has not made a cut since failing to qualify for the Open.
Stirling University student David Booth, representing Great Britain, is in joint seventh position with one round to go in the world university men's golf championships at Sun City, South Africa.
David has had rounds of 69, 76 and 78 for a 54-hole tally of 223 – 11 shots behind leader, Leonardo Motta, of Italy.
Laura Murray (Robert Gordon University) had an 82 for 246 and a share of 28th place in the women’s event. She is 19 shots behind the joint leaders, Marion Ricordeau (France) and Caroline Rominger (Switzerland).