Five Scots in leading 18 at Celtic Manor Wales Open

Glasgow-born McLean shares lead


with Dougherty, Frost & Bjorn

Heard the one about the Scotsman, Englishman, Dane and the South African? Well, they share the first-round lead in the Celtic Manor Wales Open over the 2010 Ryder Cup venue at Newport.
Thomas Bjørn opened with a five under par 66 to share the pole position with England's Nick Dougherty, Scotland’s Alan McLean (pictured above) and 49 year old South African David Frost at the first round of The Celtic Manor Wales Open.
The Dane carded three birdies in a row from the 14th in his seven birdie, two bogey round and completed an impressive finish to his round when he picked up a shot at the par five last.
“I played nice all day to be honest,” he said. “I made a couple of stupid bogeys early on and that didn't get the round going, but I hit some lovely shots on 14 and then a good drive on 15 up on the green and a lovely seven iron into 16 and they gave me those three birdies in a row there. That kind of took the round to where I was really playing.”
“It's nice, I played good, solid golf without being perfect. I just hit some good shots. To be honest 14 is always a testing hole on this golf course and I got away with a very good drive there and hit an eight iron close. When you play the tough holes well, all of a sudden it's possible to shoot good numbers, and that's what I did today.”
Dougherty, who finished fourth in the event last year, played a magnificent chip at the last for his fifth birdie and then recalled the great times he had at the venue with his mother, who died suddenly just over a year ago.
"I love it here. She was Welsh and I've found the Welsh people very receptive to me," he said.
“It was an awesome shot to be fair [the chip at the 18th]. I executed it perfectly, and it was particularly tough. I'm not sure if you can see that on TV how much slope there was off the right, but it was my only option really. It turned out to be a really nice day.”
Frost compiled a flawless round on the Twenty Ten course - which will stage next year’s Ryder Cup - and admitted he had surprised even himself with his round of 66.
“I didn't expect it around here,” he said. “The golf course isn't really built for my game - it's a little long.
“Going into the par-4s is three, four and five irons for me, and a lot of guys are out there hitting seven, eight and nine irons. As I say I'm very pleased but surprised.”
McLean joined the leading trio late in the day having been in one of the final groups to go out this afternoon, but the South African-raised, Clydeside-born Scot, who lives in Canada, showed signs he is recovered from the foot injury that hampered his 2008 season.
“I was very happy with my round today coming off the last two weeks where I was not overly confident, and to shoot five under par, I was very happy,” he said.
A stroke behind the leading players Pablo Larrazábal, Taco Remkes and Fabrizio Zanotti all signed for rounds of 67.
Spain’s Larrazábal displayed how quickly a round can change, when two under after his outward nine holes he then hit a wild approach shot at the sixth into the water and had to take a drop, resulting in a bogey.
Having taken a swipe at some reeds with his club in frustration, the 2008 Open de France winner then celebrated in style as he recorded a hole in one at the par-3 seventh, his tee shot going into the cup on the second bounce.
“It was a great shot,” he said. “I thought it was the perfect club, if I hit it perfect, and I hit it perfect and I made it, so, great.”
Larrazábal was not alone in his feat on day one, however. Indian Jeev Milkha Singh produced the day's second ace on the 196 yard 13th and then Dane Mads Vibe-Hastrup followed Larrazábal in.
Paraguayan Zanotti was another to have a round of two halves. The World Number 317 parred every hole on the front nine, but only had one on the back nine.
He birdied three in a row from the tenth, the 14th and 15th and also the last with consecutive bogeys at the 16th and 17th for a four under total.
On today's evidence in the Wales Open, Bjorn and Paul McGinley, wanted by skipper Montgomerie as Ryder Cup team vice-captains, still have it in their power to qualify for the side. "If I don't make the team I am happy to help, but if I am then I will obviously play," said 38-year-old Bjorn, whose last appearance was in the 2002 victory at The Belfry.
McGinley hit back from a triple bogey 7 on his second hole and signed for a 68.
With an eye on next year's attempt to win back the Ryder Cup, Montgomerie has made the pair captains for this September's Vivendi Trophy - the old Seve Trophy - between a Continental Europe side and one from Britain and Ireland.
But McGinley feels exactly the same as the Dane about his No 1 Cup goal.
"I really want to make the team," said the 42-year-old, who stood down as an assistant to Nick Faldo because he felt it was a distraction to his playing career.
"I think Monty is going to be a great captain and I would love to play under him. Monty is going to announce who his vice-captains are going to be after qualifying finishes. Obviously he's picked myself and Thomas to be involved in the Vivendi and I don't think you have to put one and one together.
"I'm obviously in his mind somewhere in terms of those four people he's going to have, but I'm a lot more comfortable trying to make the team this year and whatever happens after that happens.
"That's when I'll be able to make a decision, but in the meantime it's gung-ho trying to make the team."
SCOTSWATCH: A great opening day for Scottish players with five in the leading 18. Apart from Alan McLean sharing the lead, Richie Ramsay, Gary Orr, Jason McCreadie and Callum Macaulay shot 68s to be sharing eighth place. Peter Whiteford and Colin Montgomerie are only a shot behind them.
Not such a good day for Marc Warren (79) and Paul Lawrie who announced he was going home to rest a chronically sore left foot after also returning a 79.

FIRST ROUND SCOREBOARD
Par 71
66 Alan McLean, Thomas Bjorn (Den), Nick Dougherty, David Frost (Rsa)
67 Taco Remkes (Ned), Fabrizio Zanotti (Par), Pablo Larrazabal (Spa)
68 Richie Ramsay, Gary Orr, Jason McCreadie, Tim Dykes, Maarten Lafeber (Ned), Robert Rock, Callum Macaulay, Lee Slattery, Richard Green (Aus), Ignacio Garrido (Spa), Paul McGinley
69 Benn Barham, Birgir Hafthorsson (Ice), John Bickerton, Peter Lawrie, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa), Wade Ormsby (Aus), Marcus Fraser (Aus), Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind), Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (Fra), Stuart Davis, Jeppe Huldahl (Den), Peter Whiteford, Colin Montgomerie, David Lynn, Simon Khan, Gary Lockerbie, Craig Smith, Mark Foster
70 Steve Webster, Magnus A Carlsson (Swe), Ross Fisher, Branden Grace (Rsa), Klas Eriksson (Swe), Mark Brown (Nzl), Raphael Jacquelin (Fra), Marc Cayeux (Zim), Federico Colombo (Ita), David Dixon, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa), Gregory Bourdy (Fra), Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra), Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe)
71 Carlos Del Moral (Spa), Christian Nilsson (Swe), Robert Dinwiddie, Paul Waring, Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa), Steven O'Hara, Stephen Gallacher, Richard Finch, Niclas Fasth (Swe), Oskar Henningsson (Swe), Michael Curtain (Aus)
72 Jonathan Caldwell, Joakim Haeggman (Swe), Alfredo Garcia-Heredia (Spa), Peter Hedblom (Swe), Oliver Fisher, Iain Pyman, Stephen Dodd, Antti Ahokas (Fin), Sam Little, Bernd Wiesberger (Aut), Michael Lorenzo-Vera (Fra), Chris Wood, David Howell, Kyron Sullivan, Andrew Coltart, Scott Strange (Aus), Peter Senior (Aus), Seve Benson, Gary Murphy, Sam Walker, Marcus Higley, Phillip Archer, Corey Pavin (USA), Jyoti Randhawa (Ind), Christopher Doak
73 Alvaro Velasco (Spa), Danny Willett, Rafael Echenique (Arg), Wil Besseling (Ned), Felipe Aguilar (Chi), Alessandro Tadini (Ita), Alejandro Canizares (Spa), Chapchai Nirat (Tha), Santiago Luna (Spa), Michael Hoey, Gregory Havret (Fra), Richard Bland, Shiv Kapur (Ind), Francois Delamontagne (Fra), Rhys Davies, Paul Broadhurst, Jamie Donaldson, Inder Van Weerelt (Ned)
74 Mikael Lundberg (Swe), Ake Nilsson (Rsa), Michael Campbell (Nzl), Marcel Siem (Ger), Scott Drummond, Mads Vibe-Hastrup (Den), Simon Dyson, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha), Brett Rumford (Aus), John E Morgan, Marco Ruiz (Par), David Drysdale, Michael Jonzon (Swe), Nick Ludwell, Ross McGowan, Bradley Dredge
75 Ulrich Van Den Berg (Rsa), Damien McGrane, Garry Houston, Mikko Ilonen (Fin), Martin Erlandsson (Swe), Sion Bebb, Kenneth Ferrie, Simon Wakefield, Kane Webber (USA), Anthony Kang (USA), Anthony Wall, Ricardo Gonzalez (Arg), Eirik Tage Johansen (Nor), James Heath, Matthew Millar (Aus), Rafael Cabrera Bello (Spa)
76 Jose-Filipe Lima (Por), John Mellor, Trevor Jones, Andrew Oldcorn, Phillip Price, Stuart Manley, Pelle Edberg (Swe), Graeme Storm
77 Francesco Molinari (Ita), Zane Scotland, Shane Lowry, Anthony Snobeck (Fra), Chinnarat Phadungsil (Tha)
78 Barry Lane
79 Marc Warren
80 Peter Fowler (Aus)
82 Pablo Martin (Spa)
Withdrew:
79 Paul Lawrie.
80 Anton Haig (Rsa)
Retired:
Christian Cevaer (Fra) (after 12 holes)