Van Phillips and Matthew Cort set the early pace at the Champions UK plc European Senior Masters, firing matching eight-under-par 65s to share the opening-round lead at La Manga Club in Murcia, Spain.

Following heavy rainfall earlier in the week, the field took advantage of the softer conditions on Friday, with birdies flowing across the leaderboard.

Phillips produced a flawless display, carding eight birdies without a dropped shot and hitting 17 of 18 greens in regulation. The Englishman made four birdies on each nine, including three in his closing six holes, to establish the clubhouse target.

Cort matched that mark with a bogey-free round of his own, highlighted by an eagle at the par-five 4th, where he holed a putt from almost 50ft Six further birdies saw the Englishman join Phillips at the summit.

The 2026 season has seen Cort emerge as a consistent contender, with a runner-up finish at the Reignwood Legends Championship, followed by fifth place at the Sergio Melpignano Senior Italian Open and ninth at the Portugal Legends Championship. Currently ninth on the Road to Cambodia Rankings, he arrives at La Manga firmly in form and looking to convert a string of strong finishes into victory.

Just one shot adrift, Jean Hugo continued his remarkable run of form with a seven-under-par 66. The South African, who claimed the Reignwood Legends Championship and Portugal Legends Championship, recovered from an early bogey to fire eight birdies and keep himself firmly in the hunt for a third victory.

Chile’s Felipe Aguilar joined Hugo at seven-under after a bogey-free 66 featuring seven birdies.

Cameron Clark sits a further shot back following a six-under-par 67, highlighted by an eagle at the par-five 4th. The Northern Irishman arrives at La Manga Club in fine form, having secured his first top-five finish of the season with a closing seven-under-par 65 at last week’s Portugal Legends Championship. Clark, who earned his playing rights through the Staysure Legends Tour Qualifying School in January, is bidding to retain his Tour card for 2027 and has made another encouraging start.

Christoph Günther, Michael Jonzon, Miguel Angel Martin and 1999 Open Champion Paul Lawrie are among those at five-under-par after opening rounds of 68.

With the leading four players separated by a single stroke and Hugo chasing a third title, the stage is set for an intriguing second round at La Manga Club.

For the full leaderboard, click here.

Player Reactions

Van Phillips (-8)

“I’ve been playing really well all year. It was just really solid all day. I hit 17 greens. The one I missed, I chipped close and tapped it in.”

“I just work really hard and my swing’s always pretty consistent. It’s just been a lot of consistent golf. Not quite as many putts as I would have liked, but they’re coming.”

“I think this is a great course. You’ve got to hit it straight here. You can’t play well if you spray it around, so that suits me.”

“You’ve just got to keep hitting fairways, greens and obviously putt well. The standard’s so good out here now, so you can’t really take your foot off the gas. There’s so many great players. Jean Hugo’s obviously on fire, and you’ve just got to keep going.”

Matthew Cort (-8)

“Really pleased. I think we knew it was going to be low scoring with the conditions pretty soft, but you’ve still got to go out there and hole the putts. Bogey-free, which is always nice. I played solid, so it’s all good.”

“I started on one and eagled four. It’s quite a risk-and-reward second shot. I still had a five-wood in over the water, managed to get it on and holed a decent-length putt, maybe 45 feet. They don’t always go in, so it was nice to get that in.”

“It’s totally different from last year. It was firm, running a little bit on the fairways and the greens were pretty dry and rapid. It’s totally the opposite now. It’s soft, but I guess that makes it a little bit easier off the tee.”

“You’ve got to beat a lot of good players if you want to win. That’s the goal, to try and get into contention and try to win one. I feel it could be happening, but you never know. You’ve just got to try and play golf.”

Jean Hugo (-7)

“It was a good one. A slow start, a three-putt at the second hole this morning. It was a bit tricky with the wind and still cool out there, so it wasn’t a great start. But I birdied the third hole and birdied 18, which was my ninth hole, and that gave me a bit of momentum going into the back nine.”

“I made a few good putts when I needed to, which helps. Didn’t really miss a lot of greens. I had a lot of chances and I think I capitalised on most of them, so pretty pleased with the round.”

“It’s a new week, a new course. I’ve never played here. If I can play good golf on those courses, then I can probably play some good golf here as well.”

“If you’re in contention every week, it’s quite mentally draining. You have to be up for it every day. Obviously, a third title would mean a lot. That’s what we all work for, to try and perform every time we play. So far, so good.”

Cameron Clark (-6)

“Just really solid. A couple of really loose shots early doors, actually, and then got them out of the way and played really nicely from then.”

“I was three-under going out and then hit a great shot into the par five over the water to literally a foot and knocked it in for eagle. That was really nice. Obviously a bit disappointed with 17, but all in all really pleased.”

“I’ve been driving it really, really well. On most of these courses, if you drive it well, it puts you in a good position. Once I’d sorted a couple of early things out in my golf swing, I hit some really nice iron shots.”

“It’s amazing how it’s recovered this week after the rain we had earlier. A lot of courses wouldn’t be playable, never mind the condition it’s in. They’ve done really well.”

“I tend to always try and play on the front foot a little bit, and I’ll just continue to do that.”

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