Daniel Hillier recovered from an opening bogey with a strong back nine to begin the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship with a three-under 69 at Yas Links.
The New Zealander came home in 32, making four birdies over his final nine holes, including one at the par-five 18th.
Hillier sits tied 22nd, seven shots behind Italy’s Francesco Laporta, who produced a brilliant bogey-free 62 to establish a three-shot lead after the opening round of the DP World Tour Play-Offs.
Hillier Finds His Scoring Touch
Hillier’s round began with a bogey five at the first before he responded with eight consecutive pars to turn in one-over 37.
The scoring arrived after the turn.
A birdie at the 10th brought him back to even par before another at the par-three 13th took him under par for the first time.
Further gains at the 15th and 18th completed a four-under back nine and secured the opening 69.
Hillier was the only New Zealander in the 70-player field and finished Thursday two strokes outside the top 10.
He returns for round two at 6.55pm NZDT on Friday, playing alongside England’s Joe Dean and South Africa’s Richard Sterne.
With no halfway cut, every player will complete all four rounds at Yas Links.
Laporta Leaves Field Chasing
Laporta delivered the round of the day with an eagle and eight birdies in his 10-under 62.
The Italian leads by three from Spain’s Jon Rahm, England’s Sam Bairstow and Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger, who each opened with 65.
Defending champion Aaron Rai began with a five-under 67.
Race to Dubai leader Eugenio Chacarra and Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy both finished at two-under 70.
McIlroy originally completed his round in 68 before receiving a two-shot penalty after officials reviewed an incident at the 12th and ruled he had improved his lie.
Patrick Reed, second in the season-long standings entering the week, opened with a two-over 74.
PGA Tour Dream Still In Sight
Hillier began the Play-Offs seventh on the Race to Dubai with 2,251.35 points and fourth among the eligible players chasing PGA Tour cards for 2027.
The leading 10 eligible players in the final Race to Dubai standings who do not already hold PGA Tour status will secure membership for next season.
Opening-round projections had Hillier slipping to 10th overall if the leaderboard remained unchanged, but those calculations will continue to move throughout the tournament.
His official pre-event ranking remains seventh until points are awarded on the final Abu Dhabi result.
The top 50 available players after this week will progress to the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
After a slow start on Thursday, Hillier’s closing nine ensured he remains well positioned to make his move.
Four birdies coming home — and one final gain at the 18th — have given the Kiwi a solid platform for round two.
