Robert Allenby has a one-stroke lead in Sun City (AFP)
Australian Robert Allenby birdied three of the four par fives to shoot a 68 and take a one-stroke lead Thursday after the opening round of the Sun City Challenge.
Australian Robert Allenby birdied three of the four par fives to shoot a 68 and take a one-stroke lead Thursday after the opening round of the Sun City Challenge.
South Africans Tim Clark and Retief Goosen share second spot and defending champion Hendrik Stenson is among a trio a further stroke behind on 70, two under par for the 7,981-yard Gary Player Country Club.
Reigning US Masters champion Angel Cabrera of Argentina returned a 71 and Luke Donald of England and Richard Sterne of South Africa, the only contender in a 12-man invitation field outside the world top-40, finish level with par.
Northern Ireland 'wonder boy' Rory McIlroy, Englishman Ross Fisher and rapidly improving American Nick Watney brought up the rear with one-over rounds of 73 in perfect conditions at the north-west course.
Melbourne-born Allenby, the 38-year son of an English immigrant, personified steadiness as he birdied the second, fifth, ninth and 14th holes and parred the rest.
The only par five the Australian failed to birdie was the 500-metre 10th in a round featuring driving accuracy, good rescue work from two bunkers and 27 putts on receptive greens.
Highlight of a topsy-turvy Goosen round was an eagle on the par-four penultimate hole where his down-wind 120-metre sand wedge dropped into the hole.
Goosen, the leading local hope with three-time champion Ernie Els opting for a family holiday, opened with a birdie three, then parred seven consecutive holes before snatching a four on the par-five ninth.
After starting the back nine with two further birdies, Goosen suffered a bogey and double bogey before the eagle kept him in strong contention for a second Challenge title.
Diminutive Clark, back at Sun City after a three-year absence, claimed four birdies and dropped one shot in a solid showing on a course sporting the least intimidating rough for many years.
Star attraction McIlroy, the 20-year-old from a town called Hollywood, fulfilled a childhood dream by appearing at a tournament labelled the African 'major' by the local media.
On a wild front nine, he had four bogeys and two birdies to turn in 38 before improving to a second-nine 35 in a round where he struggled with his accuracy off the tee and found only half the greens in regulation.
© 2009 AFP/sid
