Bradley Dredge and Alvaro Quiros rediscovered their form in spectacular fashion to fire rounds of 67 and share the lead after day one of the Trophée Hassan II at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam.
Dredge finished 105th on the Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex last season to lose his playing privileges but has made two of his three cuts this season and showed the form that made him a two-time European Tour winner in Rabat.
The 44 year old carded seven birdies and two bogeys in his lowest round since last summer's Dubai Duty Free Irish Open hosted by the Rory Foundation to get to five under, where he was joined late in the day by Quiros.
The Spaniard finished 145th in last season's Rankings but is exempt due to his win at the Rocco Forte Open - Verdura, Sicily, although he has only made three of 19 cuts since then.
A birdie-birdie finish helped him to a share of top spot, one ahead of England's Oliver Fisher, Italy's Lorenzo Gagli, Swede Joakim Lagergren and South Africa's Erik van Rooyen.
Fisher and Lagergren set the target from the early starters in perfect conditions and it looked for a long time that they would share the lead after day one but Dredge had other ideas.
The Welshman birdied the 11th and 12th but dropped a shot on the 16th before gains on the first and second put him in contention. Another bogey on the fourth threatened to derail his progress but he picked up shots on the fifth, seventh and eighth to hit the front.
"A good day," he said. "Very pleased to be leading the tournament after round one. I played nicely all day so delighted.
"It's just a matter of keeping the ball in play and shot-to-shot, as in looking where the pin positions are and then taking into consideration whether or not you can go for the pin or play away from it.
"I haven't played a great deal this year. I feel as though it's progressing quite well at the moment so I'm quite pleased the way it's trending, as a lot of guys say."
Quiros was well placed after birdies on the first, fifth, sixth and tenth but three-putted the 14th to slip back before his big finish.
"I have to recognise that it was a great round of golf," he said. "The score is good but I will say that the level that I displayed today from tee to green, it's been unbelievable. I know that five under is a very good score but it looks like it's a little bit short for the game that I have displayed today.
"Tomorrow is going to be a completely new day, and it's only the second round of a four-round tournament."
Lagergren reached the turn in 32 with birdies on the first, third, fifth and ninth - courtesy of a monster putt. A birdie on the 11th gave him a two-shot lead but that was cut to one with a bogey on the 13th.
Fisher was the first man to set the target in the clubhouse at four under, adding a closing birdie to shots picked up on the eighth, tenth and 12th to join Lagergren.
Van Rooyen was the first of the afternoon players to join the lead as he turned in 32 with birdies on the 11th, 12th, 16th, 17th and 18th and a bogey on the 15th. He dropped a shot after a poor third into the par five eighth but bounced back with a stunning tee-shot to five feet on the ninth to set up a closing gain.
Gagli was the only man along with Fisher to be bogey-free as he made birdies on the 15th, first, fifth and eighth.
Canadian Austin Connelly, 2012 champion Michael Hoey of Northern Ireland, Swiss Benjamin Rusch, England's Lee Slattery and China's Ashun Wu were then at three under, a shot clear of 12 players.
