Elvis Smylie battled the weather and opened with a 6-under 65 to take a one-shot lead at the BMW Australian PGA Championship.
“It’s a home game for me this week,” Smylie said. “I’m from the Gold Coast, it’s only an hour’s drive,” said Smylie.
“I’ve played a lot of golf here. I’m quite familiar with the course and every part of my game’s really good at the moment. I’m really comfortable with what I’m doing.
“I think you try to just keep the levels the same compared to what every other tournament is, but it’s a little bit tricky when you know that it’s a bigger tournament.
“It’s great having all the Aussies back home and supporting the Australian tournaments. And it’s great to compete against them because ultimately I want to be in their shoes and what they’re doing in their career.
“It’s great for me to be able to compare my game against theirs and see what areas I need to improve on.”
Fellow Australian Matias Sanchez lies in a share of second place at 5-under alongside France’s Victor Perez, Switzerland’s Joel Girrbach and Chile’s Cristobal del Solar.
