Portugal Masters 2015: Thursday Leaderboard Scores and Highlights

Nicolas Colsaerts and Andy Sullivan share a lead of seven-under at the close of play on Thursday at the 2015 Portugal Masters.

Close behind are the likes of Thomas Aiken, Thomas Pieters and David Drysdale, who went round the Oceanico Victoria with six-under 65s.

Here's how the leaderboard is shaping up after the first round in Portugal:

Pos	Player	To Par	Thursday's Score
	Nicolas Colsaerts	-7	64
	Andy Sullivan	-7	64
	Thomas Pieters	-6	65
	David Drysdale	-6	65
	Eduardo de la Riva	-6	65
	Thomas Aiken	-6	65
	Trevor Fisher Jnr	-5	66
	Kristoffer Broberg	-5	66
	Johan Carlsson	-5	66
	Jorge Campillo	-5	66

The full leaderboard can be accessed by visiting the European Tour's official website.

Recap

Colsaerts began his round in spectacular fashion. Teeing off from the 10th, he picked up an impressive four birdies in his first six holes before holing an eagle at the 17th as he looked to replicate the 60 he scored in Round 1 at the Oceanico last year.

A second eagle at the fifth took him to eight-under for the day, per the European Tour's official Twitter feed:

A dropped shot on the seventh proved to be the Belgian's only blemish for the day, with his otherwise much quieter back nine leaving him on a strong score of seven-under.

Pieters started his round well as he carded seven birdies, but a bogey on his final hole—the ninth—ensured he wouldn't be sharing the lead with his compatriot.

Aiken's start was as impressive as Colsaerts'. Starting at the 10th, the South African had recorded a score of six-under by the 18th thanks to two birdies and two eagles.

A putt at the third saw him pull level with Colsaerts:

Aiken looked set to finish the round on seven-under as he carded three consecutive pars following the birdie, but a bogey at the seventh relegated him to a tied second place.

Sullivan looked to have done the same as he carded seven birdies in his first 15 holes before dropping a shot at the 16th.

However, the Englishman responded in style as he pulled another birdie back immediately to ensure a share of the lead overnight.

Golf expert Brendan Taylor noted his impressive achievement:

Colsaerts was unable to win from a much better position last year in Portugal, and with Sullivan level and the likes of Aiken and Pieters so close behind, it will be a huge ask for him to win here.

It's all still to play for after the first day, so expect the leaderboard to take more of an indicative shape on Friday before they head into the business end of the competition over the weekend.