Gut Kaden (Germany): Former European No. 1 Lee Westwood took the early lead at the European Players’ Championship with a record nine-under-par 63 on Thursday.

Westwood, who has won on the Gut Kaden course twice before, outdid world No. 5 Retief Goosen and Swede Robert Karlsson. They had both broken the course record with 64s.

Gregory Havret, out in the first group of the morning, equalled the old record of 65 and there was a glut of low-scoring in high temperatures.

India’s Shiv Kapur scored a par 72 in the first round.

Englishman Westwood had beat world No. 1 Tiger Woods to win the event in 2000. He had also shot a 61 when he took the title for the first time in 1998 over a since-changed course, rose to the top of the leaderboard with a nine-birdie round.

The score continued Westwood’s resurgence from a poor spell in which he missed eight successive cuts. He is now hoping to secure a 17th European Tour title as well as earn a Ryder Cup place.