History repeated itself as Henrik Stenson once again came out on top in his battle with Phil Mickelson at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play on a magnificent day for European Tour members.
The pair went toe-to-toe during the final round of the 145th Open Championship in 2016 as they were tied at the top of the leaderboard with five holes to play at Royal Troon.
Stenson went on to power into a two shot lead for the first time in the final round after successive birdies from the 14th before another gain at the last ensured a 63 finish and a maiden Major Championship win by three shots for the Swede.
Another intriguing contest looked set to be in the pipeline, but Stenson took control of the match up and led after every hole as he recorded a 2&1 victory against the five time Major Champion in his opening Group 12 clash.
Stenson's success coincided with a superb day for the members of the victorious European Team at last year's Ryder Cup, where 11 of the 12 players secured wins in their opening round robin group matches in Texas.
Stenson moved into an early two hole lead following a birdie at first before a double bogey by Mickelson at the third, but the American hit back at the next with his first gain only to hand the 11 time European Tour winner the advantage at the eight with a bogey.
The pair parred their way around the turn before Stenson's lead was cut to one at the 14th following a bogey. He restored his two hole advantage at the next with a birdie before Mickelson picked up a hole at the 16th, but the Swede's tee shot to ten feet at the 17th proved too much for the American, who conceded a 2&1 defeat.
"I was pretty happy with my performance today," Stenson said. "I hit some really nice iron shots and made a couple of important putts, as well. Phil is always worth the price of admission.
"I'm in a tough group, we all know that. There's not going to be any easy matches or easy opponents out there.
"Sometimes it can almost make it easier in a way when you're up against some really top-class players, because you know you've got to bring your best game. I'm happy."
Lucas Bjerregaard provided the biggest upset of the first day when he cruised to a 3&2 triumph against World Number Five Justin Thomas.
The Dane's victory was even more remarkable after he trailed by two holes following a double bogey at the third, but three birdies and hole winning par saw him grab the initiative by the turn to lead by two.
Successive gains from the 12th saw Bjerregaard move to 4up and despite Thomas hitting back at the 15th, the 50th seed closed out a fine win in Group 5.
"I was confident that if I played well and stuck in there, I could give him a bit of fight for his money," the Dane said. "He's one of the very best players in the world, so it gives me a lot of confidence. It was a great way to start the week. And I'm really pleased with how I played today."
Jon Rahm, who burst onto the world scene when runner up in this event in 2017, produced a stunning 7&5 success over South Korea's Si Woo Kim to register the biggest margin of victory on day one in Group 8, while Matt Kuchar won 3&1 against J.B. Holmes in the other match.
Fellow Spaniard Sergio Garcia, Europe's all-time leading points scorer in the Ryder Cup, saw off current leader of the Race to Dubai Rankings Presented by Rolex Shane Lowry in a 4&2 win in Group 16.
Tyrrell Hatton never trailed and recorded three birdies during his all-European clash with Rafa Cabrera Bello as he clinched a comfortable 4&3 win in Group 9. There was late drama in Lee Westwood's roller coaster Group 9 contest with Xander Schauffele after the American's superb birdie at the last could not be matched as he snatched a 1up triumph.
Justin Harding, who led 2up through eight holes, needed to win the final three holes to mark his WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play debut with a 1up victory over five time European Tour winner Matthew Fitzpatrick in Group 4.
South Africa's Branden Grace stormed to a comfortable 4&3 victory against Japan's Hideki Matsuyama, with World Number One Dustin Johnson also starting his Group 1 campaign with a 4&3 triumph over fellow American Chez Reavie.
Rory McIlroy stormed to a 5&4 victory against American Luke List in the Group 4 clash, while England's Matt Wallace won 1up against 2011 US PGA Championship winner Keegan Bradley in Group 5.
Tiger Woods took control of Group 13 with a 3&1 success over Aaron Wise, with Patrick Cantlay and Brandt Snedeker halving their clash.
Jim Furyk, 2018 United States Ryder Cup Captain, came from behind to defeat 2014 and 2016 winner of this event Jason Day by a 2up scoreline in Group 12, while Andrew Putnam defeated Patrick Reed with a 3&2 success in Group 16.
