Rory McIlroy is hoping to use all of his experience to keep Danny Willett at bay as he goes for a third Race to Dubai title at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.
The Northern Irishman leads his nearest rival by a mere 1,613 points with seven players still in the hunt to become Europe's Number One player.
The top two in the standings went out in the final group in the first round at Jumeirah Golf Estates and could not be separated as they signed for four under par 68s to sit two shots off the leading group of Marcus Fraser, Martin Kaymer, Ian Poulter and Andy Sullivan.
McIlroy has been in this position before having won two Race to Dubai titles and the 26 year old believes that experience at the very business end of the season can hold him in good stead.
"I'm fortunate that I've been in this position a few times before," he said. "I think the first time I came in here was going against Lee Westwood in 2009. I treated it a bit like match play, which probably wasn't a good idea, and he played fantastically and won the tournament. I finished third.
"I've been in this position; I think this is the fourth time at this tournament that I was in the last group going off the first day. I've got a little bit more experience and hopefully that gives me a little bit of an advantage.
All I can do is focus on myself and try and win the golf tournament, and if I do that, then obviously everything else will fall into place - Rory McIlroy
McIlroy turned in 34 after birdies at the second and sixth, and bounced back from a bogey on the tenth with further gains at the 11th and 12th.
A spectacular holed bunker shot on the last then handed him another birdie and the four-time Major Championship winner is happy with his game.
"Ball-striking tee-to-green for the most part has been very good all throughout the year," he said. "It's been the putter that held me back. But I felt like I putted well today, so that bodes well for the next three days.
"That was a nice way to finish. It was a bit scrappy before that. I bogeyed the tenth hole and then got it back with a couple of good birdies straight away.
"In between those birdies and the birdie at the last, there was a bit of ugly golf in there. But it's nice to get around in 68. I felt like it was a little struggle at times out there but to produce something like that and obviously the way I finished makes it feel a lot better."
Willett also birdied the last, although not in the same fashion, to add to gains at the fifth, seventh, 11th and 14th with his only blemish coming on the 13th.
"I went out there and played some pretty decent golf," he said. "A couple of little scrappy ones in there.
"Rory and I didn't play our best although four under will put you right up there.
"Obviously it helped both of us shooting a good number. You can treat it a little bit like match play in that situation.
"Like I said in the press conference earlier in the week, you don't want to play match play if you're level par or one over par but as soon as you're going along quite nicely, it ended up being a pretty good match."
Of the other contenders for The Race to Dubai, Branden Grace is also four under with Byeong-hun An two under, Justin Rose a further shot back, Louis Oosthuizen one over and Shane Lowry nine shots behind the leaders.
