Southgate sets early pace in Dubai

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS
8.30am UK time Thursday 
Matthew Southgate took the early lead at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai, but he may have been sparing a thought for those golfers halfway across the world.
As the final event of the European Tour season was getting under way in the United Arab Emirates, the final round of the Qualifying School was preparing to get started at PGA Catalunya Resort in Spain.
It was there that 12 months ago, just two months after undergoing an operation for testicular cancer, Southgate secured the sixth card to regain his playing privileges and spark emotional scenes on the 18th green.
He arrived at Jumeirah Golf Estates this week as the only 2015 Q School graduate and continued his remarkable year by getting to three under after 12 holes to share the lead with Spaniard Jorge Campillo.
The Englishman had been out in front on his own after birdies on the first, sixth, seventh and tenth but made his only bogey of the day so far on the 12th.

Campillo, meanwhile, was bogey-free through his first eight holes with gains on the second, third and eighth.
Australia's Marcus Fraser, Finn Mikko Ilonen, Italian Renato Paratore and South Africa's Jaco Van Zyl were then all in the group at two under.
Ilonen recovered from an opening double-bogey to sit just one off the lead after 14 holes, while playing partner Paratore had two birdies and was yet to drop a shot.
Fraser had birdies on the third, fifth and sixth but dropped a shot on the ninth as he turned in 34 with Van Zyl dropping a single stroke in his opening 13.
There was then a group of nine players at one under.
The four men who can still win the Race to Dubai will go out in the final groups of the day, with Rory McIlroy and Alex Noren off at 1230, and Danny Willett and Henrik Stenson teeing off ten minutes later.

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