DAVID Howell got off to a promising start at the Open de España after carding a one-under-par opening round today.

But the 39-year-old Broome Manor pro could have found himself even further up the leaderboard in his 11th European Tour event of the year, but for a rogue double-bogey on the 17th hole at the Real Club de Golf El Prat near Barcelona.

Howell put together a solid display on the front nine, bogeying the par-five second but holing on the par-three eighth in just two shots to leave himself with a platform to build on.

The Swindon star then began to turn on the style, birdying the tenth hole and failing to drop a shot right through until he boosted his scorecard with successive birdies on the 15th and 16th.

But there was a bump in the road for Howell on the par-four penultimate hole as he lost his rhythm and fired two shots over, bringing his final score down to one under.

The Swindon golfer tees off his second round at 7.10am tomorrow morning.

Howell last competed in the Open de España in 2013, making the cut and finishing 44th overall.