Ivan Cantero climbs to the summit, Kiradech Aphibarnrat rolls back the years and Jonas Blixt enjoys a birdie blitz.
Everything you need to know from the opening round in Incheon.
Cantero leads the way
The Spaniard headed to South Korea on the bubble in his bid to maintain his playing rights for 2025, sitting in 117th place with the top 114 set to maintain their card after the event at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea. He reached the turn in 31 before adding a sixth birdie at the tenth to set the pace. Cantero dropped his only shot at the 16th, but responded with a brilliant tee-shot at the par-three 17th to nudge one clear of seven rivals at six under. "Obviously I need a good week or I am out of the the main Tour, but I have one more week, one more chance and my game is good condition," Cantero said. "I hit good drivers and with this course, if you are in good position, it is possible to have a good score. I think no difference. Today I made putts and the last couple of weeks I missed a lot of putts and my confidence was down all the time, and now I am confident with my putting and my driver.
Cantero comes close to an ace
The World Number 454 had just dropped his first shot at the 16th, which could derail anyone with the situation that the Spaniard is in, but he kept his cool to land his next shot to within six feet to return to six under.
Aphibarnrat stars in Incheon
Four-time DP World Tour winner Kiradech Aphibarnrat showed his ability to sit in the chasing pack behind Cantero at five under. The Thai rolled in six birdies and one dropped shot during his opening round, with his lengthy birdie effort at the 16th being the highlight. What a delightful putt.
Blixt's birdie blitz
Jonas Blixt needs a stellar week in his bid to keep his playing rights for next year and he made a fantastic start on Thursday. He began his opening round on the back nine and had to wait until the 15th before getting in the red numbers. However, he got on a roll from the 18th, his ninth, when he drained a birdie putt from five feet. The 40-year-old followed that up with efforts from seven, 17 and 14 feet at the next three holes to for four in a row and catapult himself into contention at five under through 12. Blixt dropped a shot at the sixth, but immediately picked it back up at the next to remain one adrift, although he still has two holes of his first round to complete on Friday.
Højgaard nearly holes out
One of the star names in Incheon is Nicolai Højgaard and he showed his quality at the second to card his first birdie of the day with this near slam dunk.
