Daniel Gaunt shot a birdie at the 18th to claim a share of the first round lead at the M2M Russian Open.
The 36 year old got off to a flying start, firing four birdies and an eagle in his first 12 holes before a double bogey at the 15th threatened to derail his challenge.
But he bounced straight back, making two gains in his last three holes to match the clubhouse target of 65 set by Scott Jamieson earlier in the day.
Lee Slattery and Bradley Dredge are one stroke further back while defending champion David Horsey is among the large group on four under.
Gaunt reached the turn in 32 after following up back-to-back birdies at the second and third holes with another gain at the fifth.
He picked up another shot on the 11th before chipping in for an eagle at the 12th as the rain began to fall at Skolkovo Golf Club.
A double bogey at the 15th halted Gaunt's progress but he held his nerve, picking up shots at the 16th and 18th to finish the day on six under.
Gaunt was thrilled with his performance. He said: “It was a good bounce back on the 16thand 18ththere after a double bogey at 15. Apart from that I played great golf today. I holed loads of putts and started with a load of one-putts.
“I had a great chip in at the 12th. I bombed a driver and then cut a little three-wood in because the hybrid was going to go the opposite way so I missed it just right and committed to the chip and it just ran out perfectly, right in the middle.
“I have been playing well. Last week, I wasn’t stressed about missing the cut. Daniel Gaunt
"I got told I was playing great golf and I just came out here believing that now and if I can keep that up, one shot at a time, the results will take care of themselves.”
Jamieson, starting his round at the tenth tee, carded six birdies - including four in a row at the beginning of his back nine - on his way to a flawless 65 and he was pleased with the way he finished his round.
He said: "The birdie putt at nine was looking good but it was just a relief to see it settle just a foot from the hole.
"It’s a tough hole today, playing into the wind with a back pin so three is a good score there."
Slattery mixed six birdies with a solitary bogey to finish on five under, while consecutive birdies at his final two holes saw Dredge join him in a tie for third.
Dredge was delighted with his score. He said: “I’m very pleased with five under, it’s a good score around here today.
“It got a bit tricky at times, we had some breeze and a bit of rain, so a couple of things to contend with but overall a good score.
“Obviously it’s only round one and there’s a long way to go, but you can certainly put yourself out of it on the first day so I played steady apart from a couple of poor shots around the turn. Other than that - a good solid round.”
