Nicolas Colsaerts fires eight birdies in a row to lead Italian Open
Friday 18 September 2015 16:31, UK
Nicolas Colsaerts fired eight birdies in a row on his way to a flawless opening 63 to take a two-shot lead at the Italian Open.
Starting on the back nine at Golf Club Milano in the Parco Reale di Monza, home to the world famous motor racing circuit, Colsaerts began with four pars before five straight birdies from the 14th took him out in 31.
The former Ryder Cup star then got up and down from a greenside bunker on the par-five first and also birdied the second and third to make it eight in a row, before narrowly missing from 20 feet on the next.
Due to the preferred lies in operation, Colsaerts' achievement would not officially equal the European Tour record, but a ninth birdie of the day on the eighth gave the 32-year-old a two-shot lead over India's Shiv Kapur, Sweden's Kristoffer Broberg and home favourite and former champion Francesco Molinari.
"It all felt pretty easy to be fair," Colsaerts, now world No 218, told Sky Sports 4. "We all know what it's like when you get on fire and keep going. I did not know how many [in a row] it was; at one stage I started counting and stopped at six.
"It did feel like you could birdie every hole because I was playing nicely. I only holed a very long one on the second, which was my 11th, but all the others were very makeable.
"I have been playing for a while and I was kind of waiting for a round like this where everything clicks together. I kept on missing shots here and there that make a difference, where today everything just went together."
Colsaerts has not won since claiming the World Match Play Championship in 2012, which persuaded European captain Jose Maria Olazabal to give him a wild card for the contest in Medinah.
Molinari, who was part of the victorious European teams in 2010 and 2012, has not played since the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits after his wife Valentina gave birth to the couple's second child last month.
The Italian carded eight birdies in his seven-under 65, finishing in style with a hat-trick of gains from the seventh, only to be matched late on by Broberg after the teenager picked up five strokes over the closing five holes.
"I am happy with that. It went quite smoothly considering I was coming from four weeks off," Molinari told Sky Sports 4. "It felt really good today.
"I have prepared well the last few weeks to get here in good form and it showed today. It always gives me that extra motivation to play in front of my home crowd, so I wish I could do it more often than once a year."
French Open champion Bernd Wiesberger is part of the group a further shot off the pace, while Martin Kaymer and Danny Willett opened with four-under 68s.
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