George Coetzee shot a stunning opening round of 64 to lead the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters at eight-under par.
The 27-year-old South African, who is seeking his maiden victory on the European Tour, would make seven birdies and an eagle at Doha Golf Club, as he brilliantly positioned himself at the summit of the leaderboard ahead of compatriot Dawie van der Walt and England’s Steve Webster, who would make Tour history by astonishingly opening his round with an albatross on the 10th.
“I was quite lucky to get away with the shots I hit today, but another good putting display to put a nice number in,” said the three-time runner up on the Tour.
Coetzee was particularly impressed with his putting prowess on Wednesday, and he is in confident mood and fully believes that there is more to come.
“I think I had 21 putts with a three putt, so that goes to show, I can hit the ball a little bit better.
“I'm busy working on stuff on my swing, so it's nice to shoot good numbers when you're busy working on stuff. But I can't wait for it to click because I might be unstoppable.”
However, most headlines will focus on Webster, after the Englishman recorded the second albatross on the Tour in three weeks. Having got underway on the par five 10th, the 39-year-old, who has won twice on the European Tour, would hole his second shot from 254 yards to become the first player to ever open a round with an albatross.
“It was 254 yards to the pin, slightly into the wind off the left,” the former Portugal Masters champion said. “It was a five wood and I hit a great shot, obviously straight at it.
“Because I carry a big crowd following me, there were about two people behind the green and one of them started jumping up and pointing down and I didn't know if it had gone over the back into the rocks or in! I got up there and he started clapping and it was a dream start.”
It was the second albatross of his career, having achieved the feat at the Open d’Italia in 2011. Incredibly, he used the exact same five-wood today. “I have never been three under through one before and you wonder is this my day or have I had all my luck on the first hole, but I played great after that.”
Webster would make five birdies in his round, before a bogey at the sixth brought him back to seven-under. “I was really consistent, gave myself a lot of chances and made a few putts and was probably a little disappointed with seven under to be honest. I probably should have finished nine or 10 under but it's a good start.”
Dawie van der Walt won the Nelson Mandela Championship on home soil in December, and the South African would produce a brilliant bogey-free opening round of 65 that included five birdies and an eagle.
The 30-year-old will be hoping that this week progresses differently to last week in Abu Dhabi, where he opened with a 68 before falling down to the bottom of those who made the cut in 71st.
“I had a terrible week and looked like a blind squirrel, I couldn't do anything right. Although my game didn't feel too bad, so playing well today, I'm not too surprised.
“I'll just try and birdie every hole like I did today. I played solid and I forgot about last week, so just keep the same mind set and do the same things.”
Former Ryder Cup player Ross Fisher and in-form Rafael Cabrera-Bello are among those on six-under, while a trio of former Open Champions are among the group on five-under.
Four-time major winner Ernie Els would demonstrate his immense talents from the sand by holing out from a greenside bunker to complete his opening round of 67. American veteran John Daly would also pitch-in on the 18th, this time from the rough, while 1999 Open Champion Paul Lawrie, a two-time winner of this event, would also finish at five-under for the day.
World number three Henrik Stenson would recover from his surprising missed cut in Abu Dhabi, with an opening round of 68 in Doha. With Tiger Woods getting his season underway in California this week, the Swede has targeted overtaking the 14-time major champion at the summit of the world rankings.
There was to be disappointment for Darren Clarke, who was scheduled to make his 500th appearance on the European Tour. However, the 2011 Open Champion at Royal St Georges had to withdraw from the tournament due to a chest injury shortly before play began. The Northern Irishman will now look forward to competing in the United States for the next few months.
At the end of day one in Doha, 70 players are all within eight shots of the lead, but it is George Coetzee at the top who believes that he could become unstoppable.