Photo: Legends Tour, Getty Images

The English pair started the week with four-under-par 68s to top a congested leaderboard at Golf Almerimar in Spain.

Conditions had been benign all week, but the players had to battle howling winds in Friday’s first round on the Andalucian coast with Greg Owen and Phillip Archer leading the inaugural European Legends Cup. But it’s very tight with 23 players within four shots of the lead.

The early starters definitely had the better of the conditions with very little wind for the first hour-and-a-half of play before it really started to get up from around 10.30am local time before reaching 25-30mph in the afternoon.

Former PGA Tour player Owen picked up three birdies in his first five holes to turn in 33. Another birdie at the 10^th was quickly followed by his only dropped shot of the day on the 11^th. He then made six pars in a row before picking up a shot on the par-5 18^th to get back to -4.

“My round was very good,” he said. “That’s the best I’ve played in a long, long time. I drove it well and just kind of got it close on the greens. You’re just trying to make pars and take advantage of the par-5s.

“There wasn’t a breath of wind (at the start). We managed to get four holes in, and it’s not the longest course we’re going to play. I took advantage early and then it was just hanging on in. I hit a lot of fairways, a lot of greens. I only missed two greens, which in this wind is pretty good. So I’m very happy, but there’s a long way to go.”

Archer made an even faster start as he eagled the 2^nd and birdied the 3^rd and 5^th. He made his sole bogey on the 7^th and had a blemish-free inward nine in some of the toughest conditions, with one red number at 15 getting him into the clubhouse with a 68.

“I played some great stuff,” said the three-time Challenge Tour winner. “I think I’ve missed about four six-footers for birdies on the back nine, but I’ve holed about three four or five-footers for par, so it kind of evens itself out. I was a bit gutted on the last because I hit 6-iron in and didn’t make birdie, but I can’t be unhappy with that score.

“There was no wind on the first three holes, and we were wondering where this wind is going to come from. Then, all of a sudden, someone switched a fan on on the 4^th and it just kept getting stronger. It’s not easy out there. I’ve hit a 9-iron 199 yards and a 6-iron 130 yards, so it’s just ridiculous.”

Five players are just one shot back on -3, including former Open champion Paul Lawrie, MCB Road to Mauritius number two Scott Hend, this year’s Swiss Seniors Open winner Jarmo Sandelin, Simon Khan and Euan McIntosh.

Scott Drummond, Robert Coles, Keith Horne and Jean van de Velde are at -2, with a five-way tie for 12^th at -1 featuring six-time Legends Tour winner Adilson da Silva, last week’s Legends Open de France victor Greig Hutcheon and major champion Michael Campbell.

One-and-a-half hours into play, only one player was over par, but by the end of the day 16 of the 60-man field had completed under-par rounds. The forecast for round two has 20mph winds from the very start, getting up to 26mph in the afternoon, so anyone under par through two rounds is likely to be well in contention going into the final 18 holes on Sunday.