Austrian giant Bernd Wiesberger birdied five holes in succession near the end of his round an eight under par 64 on day one of the Dubai Desert Classic.
Wiesberger, 29 produced a European Tour equalling career low that included just 25 putts in ideal conditions on the Emirates Course as he strives for a third Tour success and a first since winning twice in 2012.
The 6-foot 3-inch Vienna-born golfer had been three under par with birdies at six, nine and the 10th hole before starting his birdie charge at the par five, 13th.
“I struggled with my putting early on, and just didn’t get the ball to the hole, and finally hit one close on six, got a nice birdie on nine and just took advantage of the back nine,” he said.
“Once I got the pace right on the greens, which was a bit slower than expected, then the ball started dropping.”
Wiesberger arrived in Dubai after leading both the second and third round of last week’s Qatar Masters before setting for an eventual third place behind South African Branden Grace.
The effort in Doha saw Wiesberger jump eight place to 59th on the World Rankings and again within sight of becoming the first Austrian-born player to compete in the Masters at Augusta National.
Austrian Bernd Wiesberger on route to a career equalling 64 on the opening day of the Dubai Desert Classic.
Wiesberger had reached a career high of 52nd in the world in late 2013 and with still two months to cut off point for the 2015 Masters, he needs only to match last week’s effort in Doha to be assured of creating both Austrian and Masters golfing history.
“My game feels good right now and I am happy with what I expect out of my game,” he said.
McIlroy posted seven birdies in round, including birding the opening two holes, and needed just 28 putts as he strives to capture the event five years after securing a first professional victory in the 2009 event.
“Compared to when I first won here in 2009 my golf game is much better and these sort of scores like I shot this morning just come a lot easier to me these days,” he said.
“So managing my game and knowing how to shot a score is kind of second nature whereas back then, 66 would have been a really good score for me but these days it’s sort of what I expect of myself.”
However since his first career success in the Middle East in 2009 McIlroy has yet to again taste victory and needed no reminding of his fourth second place finish a fortnight ago in nearby Abu Dhabi.
“Today’s round was pretty similar to how I started in Abu Dhabi as I didn’t hit a fairway to my eighth hole, but I scored well for those holes,” he said.
“So I can’t really complain with a 66 to start and I feel like I’ve started off this tournament pretty well the last few years, and it’s another good one and something to build on.”
Gallacher showed he was not about to hand back his double winning Dubai crown back without a fight birding the first and then holing an eight-yard bunker shot at his third hole.
“This round is a statement that I don’t want to give the trophy back without a fight but then it is only the first round and I still have three rounds to play,” said the Scot.
Gallacher is looking to join a select group of five players to have won three European Tour events in succession.
