WORLD CUP:MARTIN KAYMER and Alex Cejka shot Germany into a one-stroke lead after the first-round fourballs of the World Cup at Mission Hills in China.
World number 26 Kaymer's round included a huge eagle putt at the seventh as he and Cejka combined for a first-round 10-under-par 62.
Ireland's Paul McGinley and Graeme McDowell are well in the hunt on seven-under-par 65 despite a double-bogey on the last which saw them drop from second to tied sixth.
"I think in betterball format, no one is really able to run away with it," said McDowell.
"Foursomes is the key. We need to get out there, play as solidly as we played today, knock it around a few under par, and keep ourselves well in the tournament."
A strong finish from the Australian pairing of Richard Green and Brendan Jones left them second on nine under.
Kaymer, meanwhile, is keen to turn the disappointment of narrowly missing out on a Ryder Cup debut into a positive by leading Germany to success this week.
The highly rated 23-year-old enjoyed a superb second season on the European Tour in 2008, securing victories at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship and BMW International Open.
However, Kaymer fell just short of making the European Ryder Cup team as he finished 10th on the European points list to leave him one spot behind Oliver Wilson with the Englishman taking the last automatic berth.
But Kaymer still travelled with the European team after captain Nick Faldo decided to take the young German as a guest to experience the Ryder Cup first hand.
"I learned a lot of things at the Ryder Cup," said Kaymer. "It was a different format there.
"That was matchplay, and here it's strokeplay, and you can be aggressive in the betterball, what we played today. But it's very, very tough to say now what was the most important thing I learned or which helped me so much that we played well today."
Kaymer was in fine form from the first hole at a blustery Mission Hills Golf Club and reeled off three successive birdies before Cejka added another on the par-four fourth.
Kaymer then shot a superb eagle three on the seventh, holing a putt from over 65 feet before he picked up another shot on the ninth to ensure Germany reached the turn at seven under.
The 2007 European Tour Rookie of the Year added another two birdies coming home while Cejka weighed in with one more to ensure Germany hold a one-stroke advantage over Australia. Canada, The United States and Spain are tied for third on 64.
Scotland's Colin Montgomerie and Alastair Forsyth, looking to stage a successful defence of the trophy, finished six shots off the pace after a 68, while England's Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher are a shot further behind.
