Ryder Cup skipper Colin Montgomerie marked his 500th European Tour appearance in style by finishing the first round of the Andalucia Open one shot off the lead.

Montgomerie, struggling at 137 in the world, carded a five under par 67 to join fellow Scot Steven O'Hara, France's Jean-Francois Lucquin and Juan Parron of Spain in second place at the Real Club de Golf de Sevilla.

However, it was another Scot, unheralded Chris Doak who was on top of the leaderboard after a bogey free six under par 66.

"The best gift was that 67," said Montgomerie who was presented with a giant cake to mark his 500th event.

"That's three tournaments in a row with a 67. Things are looking up.

"People say that being The Ryder Cup Captain will hurt my game, but I think exactly the opposite. I've been looking for ways to relax on the course and I think I've found it.

"It was a very nostalgic round. I was thinking about all sorts of things — my three PGA wins, eight Order of Merits, how far I've walked (all the way to Hong Kong) and being The Ryder Cup captain.

"I've thought about that every minute of every day since I was appointed," added Montgomerie, who is the 18th player to reach 500 tournaments on the European Tour.

He carded four birdies in his first six holes but then ran up a six on the 16th after going into the water. He then converted chances of 15 and 30 feet at the 18th and first.

An 18 footer also went in for par at the 451 yard second and after a second bogey two holes later he holed from the same distance at the fifth and parred in.

Doak, ranked a lowly 1,329th in the world, posted six birdies in his round.

He came through qualifying school at the seventh attempt and is delighted just to be competing on The European Tour. He said: "Getting my card was fantastic— you just have to keep going."

AFP

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