Darren Clarke who carded a 67 started his 2004 campaign with a bogey 5 on the treacherous first hole but soon rectified matters by having birdies at 4, 5, 6 and 9. His back 9 was blemish free and contained 3 birdies. Clarke, who has recently stopped smoking said, "My first competitive round without having any nicotine in my body!".

Tiger Woods finished on 2 under after an adventurous round containing hazards, three putts and an eagle from 20 feet at the last.

Defending champion, Ernie Els, who last year secured a victory on 31 under, struggled to finish on 73.