Day to forget for Wood

Chris Wood has made a poor start in his title defence at the Lyoness Open after finishing well off the lead after the first round.

Seven shots stand between the Englishman and the overnight Spanish leader Adrian Otaegui, who enjoys a two-shot barrier between himself and nearest competitor, in the form of Sweden’s Bjorn Akesson.

Wood was unable to produce the same standard of golf which helped him win the BMW PGA Championship a fortnight ago, as he bogeyed his final two holes at Diamond CC on his way to a one-under 71.

Meanwhile Otaegui was delighted with his performance and hopes he will be able to keep it going ahead of Friday’s play.

“Of course I’m very pleased,” he told European Tour radio. “I played well from the beginning until the end, didn’t make too many mistakes. I missed a couple of greens but then I made good up and downs.

“The course is pretty hard and it’s not easy to get the ball close to the pin so I’m pretty pleased with it.”