Matt Fitzpatrick surges into standalone lead at Dubai Desert Classic

The Sheffield golfer fired his lowest opening round score for four years, carding a brilliant 65 which included four consecutive birdies to conclude the round and finish on seven under par.

"It was obviously a great finish to the round,” the 25-year-old told Sky Sports.

“A couple of things that I've been doing in the off-season sort of looked to have paid off a little bit.

"I just added a bit of extra length to my driver, so it's given me a few yards to help get on in two on the last because I've never been able to do that.

“And then, just wedging it a lot better has given me a few more chances coming in.

"I do like the golf course. It's tough, you've got to hit fairways, you've got to hit greens and I think it does suit my game if I'm playing well. 

"So it's nice to be able to get off to a good start and three more rounds like that would be nice."

Opening with a birdie, his front nine was tame in comparison with the back, adding another birdie and a single bogey to his scorecard.

But he surged after the turn, carding six birdies in a superb finish.

Fitzpatrick kicked his 2019 campaign off last week with a fourth placed finish at the Singapore Open, showing superb consistency and producing two rounds without a single bogey.

Danny Willett is competed at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in San Diego.