Thursday 8 October 2015 19:28, UK
Ian Poulter admitted to feeling an unusual pressure ahead of his opening round at the British Masters in Woburn.
Poulter, teeing-off as the tournament's official host, played his way round his home club with a three-under-par 68 in front of more than 15,000 spectators.
"I felt nervous on the first tee today, on the 10th, and that's a feeling I haven't had for a little while, but it was a nice feeling," Poulter said. "I was pretty pumped last night and I slept fairly well but I was excited and I couldn't drop off to sleep.
"Coming out today and seeing everyone on the course and a lot of familiar faces - it was a great day."
The 39-year-old is aiming to end a three-year wait without a tournament win, and said he was pleased with his form heading into the second round on Friday.
"I got off to a nice start with a birdie at 10 and 12, [but] had a couple of little mishaps at 14 and 15," Poulter added.
"Overall, I'm pretty happy with the day. There were a couple of little cheeky putts which I thought were in. But all in all it was a pretty good round of golf."
Following his round, Poulter took to Twitter to voice his appreciation after a successful opening day at Woburn.
"Huge thanks to @SkySports in creating 15,000 tickets for the spectators. The crowds were amazing, thanks for supporting the #BritishMasters."
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