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Oscar Floren shot his best round of the season to claim the lead after day one of The Irish Open at Carton House.
The Swede, yet to finish better than 25th in a European Tour event this season, notched four birdies and an eagle in his six under par 66.
That was one ahead of 2009 winner and home favourite Shane Lowry, France’s Jean-Baptiste Gonnet, Dutchman Joost Luiten, Northern Ireland’s Michael Hoey and recent Madeira Islands Open winner Peter Uihlein.
Lowry, who was still an amateur when he won at Baltray in 2009, was playing alongside WGC-World Number Two Rory McIlroy - whom he beat in the first round of the Accenture Match Play in February - while the third member of the group, the in-form Thomas Björn, carded a 68 that was matched by the likes of Paul Casey and former Ryder Cup Captain Jose Maria Olazábal.
Floren was delighted that some changes in his game were starting to pay dividends.
“I played great today,” said the 29 year old, who had to go back to Qualifying School to retain his card over the winter.
“It was nice to get off good start today. I hit a lot of fairways, a lot of greens, and eventually a few putts are going to drop.
“Mentally I’ve changed a bit and put in the work, doing the smart things every day. After March/April I changed things and it’s been paying off. I’ve been in form the last few weeks, I finished well in Germany but I played well in St Omer and Austria the first two rounds as well.”
Lowry has the benefits of home advantage this week as he owns a house on the course, but revealed: "Family are banned from the house until Sunday afternoon.
"I always hang out with Graeme Storm and Oliver Fisher and when the tournament was announced I said they could stay with me. I'm trying to keep my routine as normal as possible this week.
"It would seem like there should be more pressure on me this week, but I'm looking at it as an advantage. I play this course week-in, week-out and know it like the back of my hand.
"I went to Baltray just happy to be there and would have been happy going home with four rounds under my belt, but obviously I came away with a lot more than that. This week and 2009 is like chalk and cheese. You can say I'm coming here trying to win the tournament but I'm trying not to talk too much about it."
Casey was ranked third in the world in 2009 but is currently 169th after struggling with form and fitness, most notably in 2012 after breaking his collarbone while snowboarding.
However, he qualified for the recent US Open with a second round of 64 at Walton Heath and after finishing 45th was inspired by seeing Justin Rose go on to lift the trophy at Merion.
"That's what I want to be doing," Casey said. "I can see the hard work Justin has put in and his steady progress up the world rankings. I know I have been working extremely hard the last few months and I feel I can play that kind of golf.
"Qualifying for the US Open made me realise how precious they (Major Championships) are. I think I am ready and want to win one. Watching Justin winning was fantastic, it motivates me and motivates me in the right way. I don't get upset by it.
"I want to emulate what those guys are doing so it forces me to work a little bit harder, a little bit smarter and I know deep down that my best golf is still ahead of me."
