Tricky start for Broadhurst
Ryder Cup hopeful Paul Broadhurst enjoyed a rollercoaster start to the first round of the Nissan Irish Open today.
Starting on the 10th at a windswept Carton House, Broadhurst struggled initially with the conditions and bogeyed his first two holes to drop to two over par.
But the 40-year-old then made amends in spectacular fashion, firing a hole-in-one on the 204-yard 12th with a six-iron to get back to level par.
That was good enough to lift Broadhurst, currently eighth in the Ryder Cup standings, high on the leaderboard with only England’s Nick Dougherty under par after more than an hour’s play.
Dougherty, also playing the back nine, had birdied the 11th and 12th to move to two under, two clear of a group containing Broadhurst, Paul Casey, Ian Poulter and course designer Colin Montgomerie.
Arsenal fan Poulter had at least made his 7.50am start time after his hectic journey to Paris to watch the Gunners’ Champions League final defeat to Barcelona.
The 30-year-old had chartered a seven-seater plane to take himself, his father, fellow professional Simon Khan and several friends to the Stade de France straight after Wednesday’s pre-tournament pro-am.
As long as there was no extra-time or penalties, Poulter expected to be back in Dublin around midnight, with the course around a 30-minute drive away.
No doubt hugely disappointed with the result, Poulter began with a bogey five on the 10th but birdied the 11th to get back to level par.
