Eamonn Darcy and John McHenry put their early season woes behind them yesterday to lie in joint second and third place respectively after the opening round of the £600,000 French Open at Golf du Medoc, outside Bordeaux.

Darcy fired a five-under-par 66 to share second with four others, just one shot behind surprise leader Stephen Dodd of Wales. McHenry is another shot back after a 67.

McHenry (35), made his first cut of the season last week in the Italian Open after eight consecutive failures on the European Tour. He finished last of the 80 players who made the cut there, but was delighted to have finally made it through to the weekend's play.

And he was equally happy with yesterday's four-under-par 67 at Golf du Medoc which initially put him in a tie for the lead in the clubhouse alongside Spain's Santiago Luna, New Zealander Greg Turner, Italy's Gianluca Pietrobono and Frenchman Marc Pendaries.

"I've been working hard on my game and today was another step forward. Last week was psychologically good, it was a stepping stone," said McHenry, who had only 24 putts in his round with nine single putts in his first 10 holes.

"I'm not saying my game is brilliant by any means, but at least I'm competitive now and I have to keep building on this. "My ambitions are to get up there and compete regularly and that's what I'm striving for."

Dodd, a 32-year-old from Barry, fired a six-under-par 65 for a slender lead over Darcy, Bristol's Andrew Sherborne, Londoner Daren Lee, Estoril Open winner Jeff Remesy of France and American Bob May.

But it was Dodd who had most to celebrate - a rarity this year for a Nottingham Forest fan - with his best round of the season despite some casual preparation this week.

"I didn't have a practice round and I only walked four or five holes because I felt so tired," said Dodd, who won the British Amateur championship a decade ago and played in the victorious Walker Cup side in America in 1989.

"I played the course blind really and maybe I should do it more often."

Dodd had missed eight consecutive cuts before finishing joint 59th in Italy last week and put his improvement down to a new driver and the help of long-time coach Terry Hanson who has caddied for him for the last two weeks.

The events of the previous week caught up with Scotland's Dean Robertson who withdrew after a first round 79 that included a nine at the par five second hole, where two balls were lost.

The 28-year-old from Paisley claimed his first tour title at the Italian Open on Sunday and was feeling the effects of a hectic week which included celebrating not only his own victory, but a seventh world snooker title for friend Stephen Hendry.

"I'm not feeling well at all," said Robertson. "It's not every week you chalk up your first career win. I didn't do too much celebrating but it's been all go. "I had high expectations of myself this week but I wasn't feeling myself out there."

Seve Ballesteros was probably left wishing he hadn't bothered starting the event at all after a six-over-par 77 brought an abrupt end to his recent encouraging form.

The five-time major winner had finished 17th in Italy - his best finish since 1996 - and shot a 69 in Wednesday's pro-am.

But he could only manage one birdie in a round that included the indignity of a four-putt from 15ft for a double bogey five on the short 17th, and this from the man who topped the putting averages for the whole tour last year.

Compatriot and Masters champion Jose-Maria Olazabal also struggled to reproduce the form which brought him a second green jacket at Augusta last month as he stuttered to a 72.

Olazabal, who missed the cut in his first event after the Masters, has been wayward off the tee all year and again only hit half the fairways in regulation.