A bizarre afternoon for Retief Goosen saw the two-time US Open champion twice take unplayable lies after finding some of the more remote regions of the Gary Player Country Club, and then hole his second shot at 17 for an eagle — a shot that won him a brand new Volvo — to finish one adrift of first round leader Robert Allenby after a storm-interrupted opening day at the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City.

The whole field took shelter from leaden skies and intermittent lightning for two hours midway through the round, which added to the challenge on a day when scores weren?t as low as had been predicted on a course sporting the most benign rough seen in some time. A bogey free round of 68 was enough for Australian Appleby to finish atop the leaderboard, leaving him hopeful of keeping top spot come Sunday afternoon. ?I always like coming back here, and I?d love to win the tournament,? he conceded after his round. ?I?ve won 20 times around the world, so I know I can do it, but we?ve still got a very long way to go. Anything could happen between now and Sunday; I could get chased by a baboon.?

He?ll certainly be chased by the rest of the field; with just five shots separating the twelve golfers participating, Allenby?s a long way from a victory, and Goosen is one of two South Africans leading a charging pack. Tim Clark, who passed up the chance to defend his Australian Open title in order to play at Sun City this week, sank a forty foot putt for birdie at 17 en route to a 69, and a strong start to his third Nedbank Golf Challenge. ?It?s tough to get an invitation to this event, so I?m always going to play if I get the chance, and I went well today. I knew I wasn?t playing my best golf, but if I hung in there, I could compete.

?I thought somebody would go lower than 68 though,? he added, but admitted that the pin placements and break for rain hadn?t helped. The rain certainly had an impact on Goosen, who had mud on his ball on 14 after his drive, and proceeded to hook his ball into deep rough. ?I went looking for elephants for a while,? a smiling Goosen said after his 69, ?but I thought that I had the chance to come back and make a couple of birdies on the last three holes. In the end I made eagle, so I finished okay.?

Goosen also revealed that despite three previous holes-in-one in tournament golf, it was the first time he?d won a prize. ?I?m not sure what I?ll do with it,? he laughed; giving it to Tiger Woods would be a conceivable option, given the recent damage the world number one did to his Cadillac. The car was a welcome bonus, but the two shots picked will be more important in the long run, leaving Goosen well placed after 18 holes.

A crowded leaderboard has Hunter Mahan, Robert Karlsson and defending champion Henrik Stenson in a tie for fourth at two-under, a double on 17 costing Karlsson a potential share of the lead. Angel Cabrera endured a frustrating day, four birdies offset by three bogeys for a round of one-under, Richard Sterne and Luke Donald finished level, and Rory McIlroy, who has been unwell this week and spent the rain break on a glucose drip, Nick Watney and Ross Fisher bring up the tail at one-over-par.

That leaves the trio with five shots to make up, certainly not an insurmountable challenge, and if McIlroy can shrug off his ill health, he?ll be a good bet to move of Friday?s leaderboard. But for now it?s Allenby, who lost a putt-putt competition to his eight-year-old daughter earlier in the week, who has the lead; Goosen has the first prize of the week, though, and on a course he knows better than anyone else in the field, it might not be his last. Provided he cuts downs on the elephant hunting mid-round, of course.