Scot Craig Howie has given his new season a good start with the assurance of two pays cheques from as many events to be lying top-20 at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open.

The Peebles golfer battled the hot but very windy conditions posting a one-under par 71 to move to three-under on the Mont Choisy course on the north-eastern corner of Mauritius.

He said: “I’m exhausted after that round.  It was really warm out there and with the wind making it really tough and very difficult.

Scotland’s Craig Howie (Photo – DP World Tour)

“If you had offered me one under at the start of the day, I probably would have been a bit happier but through 10 holes I was three-under for my round and feeling comfortable, and playing well.

“So to end at minus one is okay. It’s not terrible but to be five-under in total after 11 holes, I was kind of hoping for a little bit better.”

The 26-year-old Howie nded 2022 proper missing the cut in last three events and falling shy by 10 places shy of 115th on the money list in retaining full 2022/23 season membership but now after making the cut in both new season events he’ll return home Monday two for two ahead of 2023 proper mid next month in the Middle East.

And while Howie gets to play all four rounds, Craigielaw’s Grant Forrest was headed home, and two weekends off from three events this new season, missing the Mauritius halfway cut with scores of 72 and 78.

Three players – Frenchman Antione Rozner (64), Spain’s Alfredo Garcia-Heredia (68) and Finland’s Sami Valimaki (72) – share the lead on 10-under.

Valimaki had set a new course record of 10 birdies in a 62 on day one but struggled on day two of the co-sanctioned event with five birdies but also three bogeys and a double-bogey.