Henrik Stenson set the pace on day one of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship with a brilliant 64 but 25 players were within four shots of the leader.
Here, we take a look at what some of the leading contenders had to say after their first rounds.
Kiradech Aphibarnrat (66, -6)
"I'm playing solid. I mean, six under to start the year, it's a good way to start. I've been working a lot the last few days with my new coach, Pete Cowen. I didn't hit anything sharp but it's more consistent. I didn't have a big miss today. Overall, six under for the start, I think it's a great round. I've been stuck at the same position for three years. I've never worked with an overseas coach. I believe Pete has a good background and looks after a lot of top players. I'm trying to get a new experience and jump to the next step."
Marc Warren (66, -6)
"I got off to the ideal start. Started on ten and made birdie there and birdied 11 as well. I was three under after four, so really, it was the perfect start after seven or eight weeks off. You're kind of going into the round and the tournament expecting a little bit of rust to be there. It's a little bit of give it a hit and see how it goes. I've been working hard leading up to this event the last couple of weeks and it was nice to get off to the ideal start today."
Rafa Cabrera Bello (67 -5)
"I felt very pleased with my opening round, five under I would have taken, always. I felt in control of the game. Maybe a couple of sloppy swings off the tee that unfortunately got me into trouble on nine and 13. But besides that, I really thought I hit the ball well and I putted well. So just really pleased with how I played today. Many great players, much better players than myself, have gone on longer non-winning streaks. A couple of times I felt that maybe I made a few mistakes that I have learned from. Other times, I just felt that the other guys have out-played me. I know I finished second or third many times but not all of them felt like losses. They felt like good comebacks to finish second or third. I feel like I'm close, but we will know soon."
Tyrrell Hatton (67 -5)
"I'm over the moon with that, to be honest. I wasn't sure how it would go out there, being my first round back. I'm really happy and I'm looking forward to the rest of the week now. I seem to be better putting from about 50 feet today than I was from inside ten. Just one of those days, but I'm very happy."
