McGinley and Walton all the better for a rest

PHILIP WALTON and Paul McGinley shot opening rounds of 6.5 to help give the Cannes Open a spectacular send off yesterday. Walton, returning to the European Tour after a month's rest had six, birdies in a faultless display at Royal Mougins, while McGinley, equally refreshed after his Easter holiday break, claimed seven in a highly encouraging return to form on the greens.

Darren Clarke and Padraig Harrington made it a fine day for the Irish by compiling flamboyant 68s, and there were three holes in one - from Spaniards Domingo Hospital and Ignacio Garrido and Frenchman Tim Planchin.

Walton and McGinley were joined in second place by England's Peter Mitchell after Spanish newcomer Fernando Roca returned a record equalling 64 after going out in 29. Roca was runner up in the recent Catalan Open, which the Malahide golfer won this week 12 months ago to spark his surge to a Ryder Cup debut and subsequent trophy winning glory at Oak Hill.

Walton's chances of an anniversary victory have been considerably enhanced by his decision to improve his personal fitness. "I have been on the wagon for a fortnight now, cutting out all alcohol, tea and fizzy stuff, and drinking only water," he said. "I have lost 7 lb and already I am beginning to feel much fitter."

But he complained yesterday of a painful big toe on his right foot despite packing it with ice for 90 minutes the previous evening. Walton needed two pain killing tablets before he went out, and so far has been unable to discover the cause of his discomfort.

"I am totally flat footed and the Tour's physiotherapists have suggested I use some supports," he added. "It feels like I have got gout, but I hope it is nothing serious, like the arthritis that has got Jose Maria Olazabal."

Walton's decision to join the keep fit syndrome stems, he says, from the realisation that at the age of 34 he must remain in good physical shape to compete with ambitious youth. "You cannot mess about out here if you want to be successful," he added. "If I am not prepared to put everything into it then I wasting my time and my caddie's as well."

McGinley, who is currently ninth in the Volvo rankings, subscribes to the same creed, and is now in single minded pursuit of a British Open Championship place and a top 15 placing that will open doors to "major" appearances in 1997.

The leading five players in the money list after the forthcoming Volvo PGA Championship will win automatic places at Royal Lytham in July, and the Dubliner intends to be one of them. To that end, he will miss the Irish PGA Championship in order to play in the Italian Open.

In the meantime, he will be concentrating on reproducing yesterday's accuracy from the tee and putting touch which put him six under after 15 holes. "My course management was excellent and I never got myself out of position," he said. "It meant that I kept on making chances and the putter did the rest."

McGinley got down from six feet and 10 yards to birdie the first two holes. Out in 33, he added a second two at the 10th, then rolled home putts of 15 and 30 feet at the 12th and 14th, fore snapping up the birdie - on offer at the 15th.

But although Walton was to get a birdie four at the getting home over the water with a five wood, McGinley had settle for a par after driving into sand.

Clarke, who has brought his new bride, Heather, to the Riviera after their two week honeymoon in the Maldives, had eight birdies after deciding to abandon attempts to correct the faulty alignment of his old putter and instead buy one.

He holed three putt of 10 feet and two of 25 feet to rescue him self from potential embarrassment after going into the lake at the short second and taking a double bogey. A blistering finish of three birdies in the last holes enabled him to rebound second time from errors at the 11th and 14th.

Harrington, whose sights firmly set on a top 10 place in forthcoming re ranking of Tour School graduates, made a shaky start, and was only level par after 12 holes. But then he found his putting touch with a trio of birdies from the 13th and had another at the short 17th to be home in 33.

John McHerry was round in level par 71, but David Feherty was ill at ease on the tricky course despite a promising opening of two birdies in the first four holes. "I played a whole lot better than I scored," said the 1991 Cannes champion who drove out of bounds to take six at the 14th and ended with 72.

Francis Howley had 73, but Ronan Rafferty (74) and David Higgins, who completed a 75 in rapidly fading light, will need significant improvement today to qualify for the weekend.