Smith takes first day honours with 65

Former Open champion Paul Lawrie carded a five under par 67 in sweltering heat at the Alpine Golf and Sports Club to lie just two shots off the early lead held by Australian Wayne Smith.

"It was pretty annoying sitting watching it at home last week," Lawrie said. "Three guys went past me in the world rankings a week before so I just missed out but then all those players pulled out and were not replaced.

"That's not the way it should be, why leave a field half full when you could call up other players?"

"I played very well on the back nine which was my first nine holes but it was pretty hard work out there," Lawrie said.

"It's nice to get off to a good start and it would be good to get off to a good start in terms of Ryder Cup points as well."

Wayne Smith walks of the 18th after shooting a course record 65. Allsport.

Aussies Smith and Gow made the most of the cool morning temperatures with their rounds of 65 and 66, Wayne Smith's eight-birdie effort setting a new course record.

Another Australian, Rodney Pampling, shot a 68 while former Open champion Nick Faldo could only manage a 71 alongside Ryder Cup captain Sam Torrance.

Tiger Woods made a shaky start by his standards and was one over par after three - but birdies at the fourth and seventh got him back to one under par.

Woods found his stride with birdies at the seventh and eighth but then dropped a shot at the ninth after duffing his chip from thick rough just off the green.

His approach to the next was at least 20 yards too far and it took a superb first putt to help save par before he just missed a birdie chance from 10ft on the 11th.

It left the 24-year-old on one under par, six shots behind the lead still held by Smith with the heat and hard, fast greens making life more difficult for the afternoon starters.

Woods did not look completely at ease with his game but managed to coax in another birdie on the par three 12th and then pitched to within inches of the hole on the 523-yard par five 14th for a tap-in birdie.

Woods was just short of the par-five 17th in two and again chipped well to three feet for a sixth birdie of the day, eventually carding a four-under-par 68.

Tiger Woods said "Any time you can shoot in the high 60s on the first day you're going to be pretty happy with that.

"It could have been a bit lower but equally it could have been a bit higher."

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