Hole-in-one for Elliot Saltman while Graeme McDowell enjoys Wales return

Saltman's ace came on the 211-yard 17th - a hole made famous by McDowell beating Hunter Mahan to decide the Ryder Cup last October - and he followed it with another eagle at the 575-yard last. However, Saltman was left wishing his shot had come an hour earlier at the 189-yard 13th. One of the sponsors' cars is the prize there, whereas his reward was a magnum of champagne.

The 29-year-old, whose suspension was imposed after both his playing partners questioned how he replaced his ball during a Challenge Tour event last season, finished with a two-over-par 73, the same score as his brother Lloyd.

The atmosphere at Celtic Manor was never going to compare to last October's Ryder Cup, but McDowell and Peter Hanson found the Newport course a happy hunting ground again yesterday. Paired together for the opening round, the Swede fired a six under par 65 to tuck in just behind Horne.

Defending champion McDowell, meanwhile, improved five shots on his start last year with a 67 that included a 30-foot eagle putt on the 15th but "only" a par on the hole with which he is most associated. "It's a tough second shot past my statue there," he joked about the 499-yard 16th, scene of the most important birdie he has ever made and probably will ever make. "I hit it to about 20 feet and thought I made it, but I guess I've used all my magic up on that green."

There was enough good stuff, though, to boost his belief that he will not need a 64-63 finish this time to head into his US Open title defence on the back of another win. "It's all simmering nicely. I need to get into the mix this weekend and get the old juices flowing again." As it was last year, this is McDowell's final tune-up event for the second major of the season. "I've definitely got three or four days of chilling out planned next week - maybe go and wear out a groove in my mum's couch in Portrush. I'm going to fly to Orlando Thursday and Pete (coach Pete Cowen) is coming in Friday."

Hanson also has a base at Lake Nona - "I can probably hit a 7-iron to his house," he said - and, like McDowell a year ago at Pebble Beach, is relieved just to be playing in Washington in a fortnight.

The world's top 50 on 23 May qualified and he was 50th by 0.01 ranking points over Australian Aaron Baddeley. McDowell made it the same way by 0.05 points in 2010.

Hanson had eight birdies to Horne's seven, but there were also bogeys at the 13th and eighth on his card.Horne, 289th in the world, did not turn professional until he was 25 and it was only last year that the Durban golfer, 40 next week, kept his European Tour card. Coming home in a five under 30 put him top of the leaderboard, but he was at pains to stress that one of those shots was not a shank. Bunkered off the tee at the driveable 15th he explained: "I had about 40 yards and I just couldn't get a sand wedge or wedge at it to get it that far, so I hit a 9-iron and it just came out straight right. Didn't work - but not a shank!"

Ross Fisher and Miguel Angel Jimenez are the other two members of last year's European side taking part. Fisher, who on Sunday week needs to be back in the world's top 50 from his current 52nd if he is to play in the US Open had a level par 71, but Jimenez managed only a 73.

The Spaniard was paired with captain Colin Montgomerie, but four days after his first top-ten finish for almost three years - seventh in the BMW PGA Championship - the 47-year-old Scot was twice in the water over the closing stretch and signed for a 78, the same score as compatriots Stephen Gallacher and Scott Jamieson.

Of the other Scots in the field, Peter Whiteford and Richie Ramsay fired two-under rounds of 70. David Drysdale and Scott Drummond finished a shot further back, while Greig Hutcheon shot a one-over 72, Gary Orr had a 73, Steven O'Hara a 74 and Paul Lawrie and George Murray a disappointing 75.

64 Keith Horne (Rsa)

65 Peter Hanson (Swe)

66 Steve Webster, Alvaro Velasco (Spa), Paul Broadhurst

67 Damien McGrane, Alexander Noren (Swe), Graeme McDowell, Stuart Manley, Gregory Bourdy (Fra), Victor Dubuisson (Fra)

68 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind), Daniel Gaunt (Aus), Darren Clarke, Johan Edfors (Swe), Simon Khan, Graeme Storm, Felipe Aguilar (Chi), Romain Wattel (Fra), Jamie Donaldson, Barry Lane

69 Richard Bland, Christian Cevaer (Fra), Mikko Ilonen (Fin), Mark Tullo (Chi), Richard McEvoy, Scott Strange (Aus), Marcel Siem (Ger), Oscar Floren (Swe), Anthony Kang (USA), Robert Rock, Thomas Bjorn (Den), Richard Finch, Fabrizio Zanotti (Par), Oskar Henningsson (Swe), Mark Foster

70 Richie Ramsay, Anders Hansen (Den), Ross Fisher, Peter Whiteford, Robert Coles, Soren Hansen (Den), Phillip Price, Rafael Echenique (Arg), Danny Lee (Nzl), Andrew Dodt (Aus), Mark Brown (Nzl), Pablo Larrazabal (Spa), Anthony Wall, Michael Jonzon (Swe), Richard Green (Aus), Wade Ormsby (Aus), Gregory Havret (Fra)