Evans birdied five of his opening six holes on his way to a six-under 65, with Bernd Wiesberger leading the group of eight players sitting one stroke back.
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The Belgian, who will make his Ryder Cup debut later this month, confirmed on Instagram: “The very unfortunate worst case scenario just happened”.
“One bee sting on Monday during the golf challenge against Joost Luiten led to a major allergic reaction with flu symptoms, and forced me to pull out of my favorite tournament of the year”, Pieters said in a statement on his website and social media accounts.
The 29-year-old carded seven birdies, four of them in succession from the 12th, with his only bogey coming at the 17th.
European Ryder Cup skipper Clarke said he sees signs of potential greatness in Pieters’ game when announcing him as his final wild card pick ahead of Russell Knox.
“I am in a similar position to what I was past year in terms of my card”, Evans was quoted as saying by the European Tour’s official website. I played with Tiger (Woods) when he was an amateur at the 1996 Open.
Last week’s European Masters victor Alex Noren carded a 69, while Chris Wood continued his preparations for a maiden Ryder Cup appearance at the end of the month with a round of 72.
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Dunne carded a three-over 74, while Lawrie was three shots further back after a 76.
