Defending champion Tommy Fleetwood shot a scintillating first round 66 to top the leaderboard at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

The 26-year-old hit six birdies to grab the early lead on day one.

He said: “Very good. Very stress-free. Played really well from start to finish. Felt like I did what you need to do well around this golf course, which is drive it well, hit your irons, but you can’t really be too greedy all the time.

“Then sort of my pace putting was really good. Just basically did what you need to do to get a good score around the golf course.”

It was at the Abu Dhabi venue last year, where the Englishman underlined his class en route to winning the Race to Dubai title.

“Yeah, it really was. Had control of my ball really from the get-go. Just sort of did what you need to do well around here to get a good score. I drove it well. Got a way with a couple of tee shots. The rough is actually thick in parts. You think the rough is okay at times but other times it will catch you out,” he said.