Thorbjorn Olesen threatened to carry on from where he left off last week in the early stages of the revived British Masters on Thursday.
Olesen won the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews on Sunday and was quickly back on top of the leaderboard at Woburn, starting on the back nine of the Marquess course and carding birdies on the 10th, 11th and 12th.
Playing partner and tournament host Ian Poulter followed Olesen in from 10 feet on the 10th and also birdied the 12th to join England's Andy Sullivan in second place on two under par.
England's Ashley Chesters and Ireland's Paul Dunne, who both turned professional after Great Britain and Ireland's record Walker Cup victory last month, were among a large group on one under which also included Ryder Cup captain Darren Clarke and former US Open champion Graeme McDowell.
The British Masters was last played in 2008 but has returned to the European Tour schedule with Poulter and fellow Englishmen Lee Westwood, Luke Donald and Justin Rose taking turns to act as tournament host at different venues.
Donald is considering options including The Grove in Hertfordshire or links courses in the south east of England, while Westwood favours Close House in the north east.
Source: PA
