European Masters: Alex Fitzpatrick leads brother Matt after opening round

England’s Alex Fitzpatrick leads older brother and two-time winner Matt by three shots after the opening round of the European Masters at Crans-sur-Sierre.

Alex Fitzpatrick carded an impressive 63 in Switzerland, which included seven birdies in windy conditions, to share the lead with Spain’s Alfredo Garcia-Heredia on seven under par.

Four players, including England’s Matt Wallace, are tied in third on six under.

“I played really nicely,” said Alex Fitzpatrick.

“The first five or six holes were fairly brutal, I think it was gusting at 25-30mph or whatever it was.

“I got the nice side of the draw to be honest. This morning was brutal and luckily the last eight or nine holes there was not much wind, so it was nice to capitalise on the opportunities I had and hopefully the same tomorrow.”

Former US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick, who is aiming to emulate the late Seve Ballesteros as a three-time European Masters, finished on 66.

“Happy with a good start, I would have taken it this morning when I woke up and it was pouring,” said Matt Fitzpatrick, who won the title in 2017 and 2018.

“It’s one of my favourite places to be but it wasn’t really this morning. It was horrible; warming up in the rain and you get out there and it’s pouring, you don’t feel like the ball is going very far.

“Fortunately with that the greens are a little bit softer so you can be a bit more aggressive but it was quite tricky.”