Pryors Hayes' Paul Grannell continued his good form and defied gale-force winds to take a two-shot lead after the opening day of the Powerade PGA Assistants' Championship, in association with FootJoy.
The 23-year-old finished fifth at the Welsh Open PGA Championship at Royal St David's last week after carding a final round two-under-par 67 and he was equally impressive at The London Club.
His one-under-par 71 gives him the edge over Paul Hendriksen, Graeme Lornie and defending champion Jon Lupton, who all shot one-over 73s.
A group of five players, including Southwell's Paul Streeter, are a further shot back on two over.
Grannell bogeyed the par-three third but cancelled that out with a birdie at the par-four fourth. He dropped a shot again on the par-five fifth but birdied eight to ensure an even-par front nine.
On the way back he birdied 12 and 15 - both par-fives - but finished with a bogey at 18.
"I'm really happy with that," said Grannell. "I played really well again. I played well at Royal St David's last week and that form has carried over into this week.
"I didn't play very well at a pro-am in between but you get a lot more fired up for the big events.
"I didn't do anything fantastic today but I didn't do anything horrendous or destructive either. It was just really solid.
Grannell attributes his rich vein of form to hours of extra work on his game during the winter and at the start of the season.
"Last year here I finished somewhere around 18th but didn't play very well at all. This year I'm playing a great deal better and hopefully I can win it.
"I've been working really hard on my game, on all parts of it, to try and bring it forward. I'm glad it's paying off now.
"It's nice when that effort brings rewards."
Also in the hunt is Middlesbrough's Lupton, who is hopeful of successfully defending his title.
"I remember the first day last year was tough but not as tough as this," he said, referring to the extremely high winds.
"I'm very happy with that score. I realised it was all about patience and limiting the damage.
"I holed a chip and a couple of good putts but I also had a couple of three-putts - the wind was making the greens so tough.
"Hopefully I can build on this over the next couple of days.
Hesketh's Martin Edge is three shots off the lead after a 74 and said his fine form on the greens contributed to his impressive score.
""I putted it nicely and I'm hitting it well today," he said.
"In these conditions everyone's going to hit bad shots so it's important to get the putts in to hold the round together. That's what got me through today - putting well."