Gary Evans of England shattered the course record by four strokes with a 10-under 62 and took a 4-shot lead after the first round of the German Open Thursday.

Tied for second at 66 were Alexander Cejka of Germany, Greg Turner of New Zealand and Jorge Berendt of Argentina. Four players were tied at 67 -- Retief Goosen and Roger Wessels of South Africa, Soren Kjeldsen of Denmark and Robert Jan Derksen of the Netherlands.

"I was relaxed and it just happened," Evans said after breaking the record set by Malcolm McKenzie last year.

Evans never has won a pro event, but he has had a consistent season so far, missing the cut only once in 13 tournaments on the European tour.

He birdied the first five holes en route to the lowest round of his career.

Germany's Bernhard Langer, the two-time Masters champion who has won the event five times, had a double-bogey at the 14th and finished at par 72 on the Sporting Club course.

"My drives often ended up in the rough, that was my problem," said Langer, who is trying to qualify for the European Ryder Cup team.