Rose makes strong Augusta return

On his last appearance three years ago Rose was the halfway pacesetter, but then crashed to a third round 81 and has been desperate to get back ever since.

Not confirmed in the field until a week ago, a disc problem had kept him out of US Tour action since reaching the quarter-finals of the World Match Play in Tucson at the end of February.

But while other notables such as defending champion Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els and US Open champion Geoff Ogilvy struggled badly the 26-year-old Briton picked up strokes on the third and fifth.

Rose, whose best performance in a major remains his fourth place as a 17-year-old amateur at the 1998 Open, was joined when Stenson, at sixth in the world after his Match Play win the highest-ranked European, birdied the sixth and ninth to turn in 34.

Mickelson began as he did a year ago, with a bogey five, but although he rallied with a birdie at the third he dropped another shot on the short fourth, double-bogeyed the fifth and slumped to four over at the next.

While world number one Tiger Woods waited to tee off Els, another of the favourites, double-bogeyed the first and was way down the field on five over after eight.

As for Australian Ogilvy, he ran up a triple bogey eight at the 575-yard second and remained three over after eight.

Rose's great friend Ian Poulter was in the first group out and returned a three over 75.

Poulter is another who did not qualify last year and there was a treat in store for him when he arrived at daybreak and began practising.