Ewen Ferguson puts covid issues behind him to set down marker at Kenya Open

Ewen Ferguson blamed a “shocking sleeping pattern” for him finishing close to last in his previous outing and was certainly wide awake during a brilliant burst in the first round of the Magical Kenya Open.

One-under for the day through six holes at Muthaiga Golf Club in Nairobi, the 25-year-old Glaswegian followed a run of three straight birdies with an eagle-3 at the tenth, where he only had a 9-iron for his second shot and stuck it to around 10 feet.

With the same club in his hand at the par-5 18th, Ferguson finished with a birdie, which, having dropped shots at the 14th and 16th, gave him an opening five-under-par 66.

He sits in a tie for fourth place, two shots behind leader Daniel Gavins from England, and it was much more like it from the former British and Scottish Boys’ champion following a week to forget in last month’s Ras Al Khaimah Classic.

Having missed the first leg of a double-header in the emirate after contracting Covid for a second time, Ferguson finished 130th in a field of 132 players following rounds of 76-78.

“I played nicely in Abu Dhabi,” he said of finishing inside the top 40 in a Rolex Series event in his first start as a full card holder on the DP World Tour following his graduation from the Challenge Tour.

“But I then had to sit in my apartment for seven or eight days in Dubai. As a result of that, I went to the second event in Ras Al Khaimah with a shocking sleeping pattern and a golf swing where I didn’t know where it was going, to be honest.

“That was down to a total lack of playing and I knew that, but, as I was out there, I thought I’d give it a go.

“It didn’t get me down at all as I knew it wasn’t me. I was hitting it nowhere in terms of length and I think that was because Covid can kick