Sebastian Söderberg continued his recent run of fine form to lead the way on home soil after day one of the Volvo Car Scandinavian Mixed.
The Swede already had three top tens on the 2024 season when he finished second, second and third in consecutive events to top the Asian Swing and earn a place at the US PGA Championship.
He made the cut in his second Major Championship appearance last time out and brought that momentum to Vasatorps Golfklubb, carding a bogey-free 63 to get to nine under and lead by two from England's Alex Fitzpatrick and South African Dylan Frittelli.
Malaysia's Gavin Green was at six under and, in the event where 78 men and 78 women play in the same groups for one prize fund and one trophy, Ladies European Tour players Linn Grant and Lauren Walsh were in the group four shots off the lead.
At fifth on the Race to Dubai Rankings in Partnership with Rolex, Söderberg is the highest-placed player without a win in 2024 but his form suggests that will not be the case for long.
He has made 11 cuts from 11 so far this season, finishing in the top ten in more than half of his starts as he looks to add to his win in Switzerland in 2019.
His effort on Thursday was his third 63 of the season and he was happy to give the home crowds something to cheer in the third event of the European Swing.
"There's a lot of family and friends here and it's easy to put extra pressure on yourself wanting to play good in front of them," he said.
"I did feel a little extra adrenaline on the first tee which doesn't happen that often on Thursday but I got off to a good start and it was nice to have everyone out there the whole day.
"I felt like I hit my driver a little longer than I usually do and that gave me a few shorter clubs in, every miss was in the right spot and I gave myself a lot of good chances and the putter was quite hot. I saw the lines good and rolled them in and it was a pretty solid day."
Söderberg got off to a fast start with smart approaches into the first and second before he got up and down from the sand at the par-five sixth and played a stunner to four feet at the eighth to turn in 32.
He missed from 12 feet for eagle at the par-five tenth but made no such mistake after a carbon-copy shot at the 12th and he was alongside Frittelli in the lead.
An approach to 16 feet at the 15th was followed by a long putt at the next and the 33-year-old had jumped out to a two-shot lead.
Frittelli set the early pace and for a long time looked like he would not be caught before Söderberg made his move.
The Bahrain Championship presented by Bapco Energies champion got up and down on the tenth and left himself ten feet at the next before making a hat-trick of gains around his turn.
He holed from 40 feet on the 17th, half that distance on the 18th and put an approach to six feet on the first before getting up and down from the sand at the sixth and chipping in at the eighth.
Fitzpatrick also made three birdies in a row from the 17th: holing from 28 feet there, 13 feet on the 18th and getting down from off the green at the first.
A stunning second to 14 feet then set up an eagle at the third before he got up and down from a bunker at the sixth and put an approach to nine feet at the seventh.
Green made a remarkable par save on the ninth - his final hole - after finding the rocks to go with eight birdies and two bogeys.
Swede Grant, who was the DP World Tour's first female winner after lifting this trophy in 2022, cancelled out a double-bogey with an eagle while also making five birdies, while Ireland's Walsh was bogey-free.
Scottish duo Scott Jamieson and David Law and South African Louis de Jager were also at five under, one clear of a group of seven players.
