Bahrain Championship presented by Bapco Energies - Day one digest

Everything you need to know from day one in Bahrain.

Tom Vaillant led the way, a fellow Challenge Tour graduate found his feet, everyone was chasing the ace and driving par fours was the order of the day in round one of the Bahrain Championship presented by Bapco Energies.

Here is everything you need to know from Thursday at Royal Golf Club.

Big finish sends Vaillant top

Vaillant produced a birdie-birdie finish to take a one-shot lead after day one. The Frenchman did not pick up a shot until the sixth but then found another gear, birdieing eight of his last 13 holes in a bogey-free 64 to get to eight under. That left him a shot ahead of Swiss Joel Girrbach and South Africa's Zander Lombard and two clear of another South African in Ockie Strydom, Canada's Aaron Cockerill, Spaniard Alejandro del Rey and Dane Sebastian Friedrichsen. "I just tried to hit as many greens as I could and just play solid the whole day and try to putt at a great speed and if I make some putts it's great," said Vaillant. "Today doesn't matter. I just try to do everything great and we'll see where it puts me at the end of the week but obviously I'm working for that and I'm ready to face everything."

Girrbach fightback continues

Like Valliant, Girrbach is playing this week by virtue of finishing on the top 21 on last season's Road to Mallorca. He started his season with three missed cuts and no rounds in the 60s but after a top 20 last week, the Swiss is clearly beginning to feel at home on the DP World Tour. "I had a bit of a rough start, the end of last year was a bit empty to be honest but I think last week was a good start to the new year and it feels like I'm playing well now," he said. "I'm feeling good, feeling confident and hopefully I can keep going."

Aces all over the place

England's Marcus Armitage made the eighth hole-in-one of the season when he holed a wedge from 131 yards on the 12th. He had waited 20 years since his last one but we barely had to wait an hour as China's Chen Guxin then needed just one blow from 196 yards with a three iron at the second.

Anything you can do

The 12th was clearly the place to go at the pin as in the afternoon playing partners Lombard and Jorge Campillo were both close to holes-in-one of their own in back-to-back shots.

Drive to succeed

At just 322 yards, the par-four tenth is going to provide some entertainment this week and Campillo was one of a few players to find the putting surface off the tee on day one.