Thomas Pieters carded an opening round seven under par 65 to move one shot clear at the top of the leaderboard at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship.
The Belgian, who has never won on the European Tour, made a superb start by completing seven birdies in his first 13 holes.
The 22 year old, 237th in the World Rankings, had a little wobble towards the end of his round, bogeying the 15th after missing a simple putt, but recovered to finish with an eighth gain.
He said: “It was nice to start out the season with a seven under so I'm happy. I like the greens here. They changed a couple of the greens around, like four, it's going to be a really good pin and they put it front right and I think two is really good, too.”
Pieters is one shot ahead of in-form South African Branden Grace and Gregory Bourdy, who both had blemish free rounds of 66.
Grace, Alfred Dunhill Championship champion in December, said: “I really got it going on the front nine. It was a good start and I'm happy with that.”
Rory McIlroy, making his first appearance of the year, sits alongside playing partner Rickie Fowler and Peter Uihlein on five under after an impressive final nine holes.
The World Number One, second three times in four years in this tournament, failed to follow up a birdie on the tenth, his first, as a bogey on the 17th meant he completed the back nine in level par.
However, he sparked into life courtesy of a brilliant shot from the edge of the rough and bunker on the third to secure an unlikely birdie, one of five gains in six holes to complete a 67.
On that excellent shot, McIlroy said: “It's definitely a boost. It's not a shot I would practise too much, that's for sure.
“But from looking like you're going to make a bogey to making a birdie that gives you a little bit of momentum and you can go on from there and luckily I was able to make a few birdies after that.”
Ryder Cup player Fowler appeared to be marking his debut at this event with an immaculate opening round until he dropped a shot on the ninth, his last hole.
Fellow American Uihlein had three gains either side of a bogey on the 582 yard par five tenth.
Five birdies in his opening five holes gave Frenchman Gary Stal a lightning start but dropped shots on the sixth and ninth left him among half a dozen of players on four under.
Two bogies in his final five holes left 2012 winner Robert Rock on three under alongside Tom Lewis, who produced a hole-in-one at the seventh.
The Englishman's heroics - the tenth in tournament history and third on that hole - on the 200-yard par three won him a Cadillac Escalade.
Lewis, watched by his father, said: “It was a nice seven iron and as soon as I hit it I knew I hit it well, coming in high, and I said ‘that's got a chance’.
“I was just waiting for my dad's reaction who was down by the green because you can't see it because it's obviously raised there, the green. So I was pleased.”
