September 19-22
Wentworth Golf Club, Virginia Water, Surrey, England
$7,000,000
Live leaderboard
Round 2, Round 3, Round 4

Matt Wallace delighted the home crowds in the opening round of the BMW PGA Championship, the fourth Rolex Series event of the 2019 Race to Dubai, as the 29-year-old carded a flawless seven under 65 to move into a one-stroke lead.

“I'm very happy. Whenever you can get off to a start like that, it boosts your confidence and I'm just going on from last week really. I said to my caddie Smarty when we were walking to the first tee, let's keep the same focus as how we ended last week - just carry it on.

The sun blazed down upon the pristine Wentworth Club on Day One as the prestigious championship – ushering in a new era as it moved date from May to September - welcomed a total of 19,612 fans.

Wallace, who won three of his four European Tour titles in 2018 but is yet to win this year, was the star of the show as he opened with a birdie three at the first before a stunning eagle-birdie-birdie run from the fourth hole saw him reach the turn in five under par.

“It's very nice and pleasing to shoot that around here. I'm always grinding, working on trying to figure it out and get better.

“It's the biggest event for me now, my home event. I've played the course plenty of times before coming into this week, and I feel comfortable. It always helps when your game's in shape, as well.”

The Londoner cruised home with a couple more birdies to move to the top, ahead of Spain's Jon Rahm and Swede Henrik Stenson on six under par, while their 2018 Ryder Cup-winning team-mate Justin Rose was a shot further back after a five under 67.

“I enjoy the Rolex Series events," said Rahm. "I really don't know what it is, if it's coincidence or just the quality of people and players out here that make me want to play better. But at the same time, it's also the history of those events in a place like this - there's a lot of golf history and it's really fun to be around.

“You need to pick your battles on this course. You definitely need to be swinging good. Any little mistake you're going to pay for it.”