Quinta da Marinha's opening round produced one horror show, and then improved on it. Henry Meller took a quintuple bogey at the 3rd and sank to the bottom of the TEG 8 Wooden Spoon table after three holes. It is an impressive pace to set. He did not hold the position long. Stuart Neumann's triple bogey at the 4th relieved him of it, and Neumann then set about defending his claim with real commitment.

Between the 7th and the 15th he bled 29 shots. Nine consecutive holes passed without a single net par. Quadruple bogeys at the 10th and 11th were the calm portion. A quintuple bogey followed at the 12th, one of the hardest holes on the course, and another at the 14th. He signed for 17 points and a gross 43. Both were personal worsts. It was also, at the time, the worst TEG Trophy round recorded in TEG history. Not the worst of the day. Not the worst of the tournament. The worst there had ever been. He sits at the foot of the TEG 8 Wooden Spoon table by a distance that will need surveying equipment.

The Green Jacket lead changed hands three times before settling on the back end of the front nine at Quinta da Marinha. Jon Baker drew level with a bogey at the par-5 6th. David Mullin drew level in turn with a bogey at the par-5 10th. Gregg Williams then joined them with a bogey at the 11th. None of this constitutes golf in the traditional sense. It did, however, set up the turning point: Mullin's par at the par-4 13th, one of the harder holes on the course, which took him outright into first.

Baker's reply arrived at the very same hole, and was a quintuple-bogey 9. It was the low point of his round and he took it without visible complaint. He recovered with a bogey, then a double bogey, then a birdie at the 17th, which is the golfing equivalent of tidying the room after the fire. Mullin finished the day a single shot clear for the TEG 8 Green Jacket lead.