Ontario, June 6 (IANS) Denmark’s Thorbjorn Olesen and Chilean Cristobal Del Solar set the early pace at the RBC Canadian Open as each player carded a nine-under-par 61 to share a one-stroke lead during first-round play of the national championship in Ontario.

The United States’ Cameron Champ was third on 62, one shot ahead of compatriot Jake Knapp on 63 at the 9.8 million U.S. dollars PGA Tour event at the TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley North Course. The par-70, 7,389-yard public course, 40 minutes northwest of the provincial capital, is hosting the national championship for the first time.

Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard, Trey Mullinax of America and Ireland’s Shane Lowry, the 2019 British Open champion, were equal fifth on 64. Scotsman Robert MacIntyre, the defending champion, was five shots back on 65 in a group of nine players that included Taylor Pendrith, the top Canadian, and England’s Danny Willett, the 2016 Masters winner.

Beijing native Cao Yi, the only Chinese in the field, carded an even-par 70. World No. 2 Rory McIlroy, a two-time winner in Canada, was a shot further back on 71, reports Xinhua.

Del Solar, who last year shot a 57 at a tournament in Colombia, the lowest round ever recorded at a PGA Tour sanctioned event, took the lead at 10-under when he made a birdie three at the 502-yard 16th hole. He then dropped his only shot at the par-four 523-yard 17th hole before closing with a par at the last.

“I think that, once you play the course, it’s a pretty straightforward strategy, just trying to go out and execute. That’s kind of what I did today, just executed very well. Had fun with my caddie, and the score kind of took care of itself,” said the Chilean, a PGA Tour rookie at 31.

“I just want to go and execute each shot. I think everyone kind of sometimes gets ahead of themselves and thinking of the result or whatever. You just want to go out and just hit the golf shots. That’s pretty much it. It’s very simple to say it, but obviously it’s hard doing it. That’s kind of what I’ve been trying to do and trying to find some fun in this game.”

Olesen, who will play in next week’s US Open at Oakmont after earning his spot through a 36-hole qualifier held Monday in Toronto, rode a hot putter to card his career-low round featuring an eagle three at the 573-yard 18th, eight birdies, and a bogey after starting from the 10th hole.

“Obviously I played great, but my putting was exceptional today. I definitely holed some long ones as well. It was nice to see everything go in,” said the Dubai-based veteran, an eight-time winner on the European Tour.

“I didn’t actually see the front nine until today. That worked out well maybe not to know any of the holes really. Sometimes you just have a feel of the greens and you just look at it, and you can sort of see the lines easy. That was one of those days for me today, I think.”

Champ, a three-time winner on the PGA Tour, got to four-under through the first six holes before picking up three more strokes on the back nine in his bogey-free round.

“It was very solid. I stayed within myself. I kind of stuck to our game plan as far as how we’re going to try to attack this place. I was just very committed out there today,” said the 29-year-old California native. “I have no expectations this week or the rest of the year. I’m just trying to play my game and stay within myself. If I can do that, most of the time it ends up decently well.”

Pendrith, the world No. 36, gave the home fans hope for a Canadian champion when the Ontario native carded four birdies over his back nine, the front nine, after starting his morning round from the 10th hole in wet conditions.

“It was pretty wet. The greens were soft, and you really had to control your spin with the wedges coming into the greens and just kind of be smart with where you need to land the ball. So that made it tricky,” he said.

McIlroy also started his morning round on the back nine and got to one-under through 12 holes before faltering down the stretch, carding bogeys on his final two holes.

“It was my first outing with a new driver, and I felt like that went pretty well. I hit some drives that I liked and that I liked to see, so that was encouraging,” said the Northern Irishman who won the Masters in April to complete his career Grand Slam.

“Missed a couple of greens and didn’t get them up-and-down, especially those last couple of holes. Overall, I’m actually pretty happy with how I played. Obviously, I need to go a little bit lower tomorrow and over the weekend to have a chance.”

–IANS

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