NORTH BERWICK, Scotland (AP) -- English golfers Chris Wood and Matt Fitzpatrick secured easy first-round wins at the Paul Lawrie Match Play on Thursday as they look for a victory to cement a place in Europe's Ryder Cup team for the first time.
Wood recovered from losing the first hole to Brett Rumford and won 4 and 3, while Fitzpatrick powered into a 6-up lead after nine holes before closing out a 4-and-3 win over Thomas Bjorn.
Wood is the top-seeded player at Archerfield in Scotland and, like Fitzpatrick, currently occupies a spot in the European team for the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine next month.