Dodt, a 30-year-old who grew up a few hours away in Gatton, took command of the first day of play at the Australian PGA Championships on the Gold Coast with a seven-under 65 to have a two-stroke advantage on a congested leaderboard that also includes Kiwi Ryan Fox (minus five) and Adam Scott (minus four).

With the winds at Royal Pines picking up throughout the day, followed by the onset of super-cell storms that began to roll in throughout the afternoon, Dodt made the most of his early tee time to put his stamp on an eventful first round that featured a hole-in-one for Jarrod Lyle and a bizarre no-show in the afternoon groupings.

He had only seen the course for the first time during a practice round on Monday and surmised that 10-under would just about be enough to win the Joe Kirkwood Cup. A blistering beginning means he only needs another three to get to his fantasy winning mark.

"Tom, my caddy, and I said maybe 10-under at the start of the week, so it's nice to be seven-under after round one. I wanted to hit the ground running for the 2017 [European Tour] season ... hole one, shot one and I managed to do that today.

"I hit it really well, putted really well. It was just a really solid run. It's the only course I'd never played on the Gold Coast. So Monday was literally the first time and I like it."

Dodt has won twice on the European Tour (2010, 2015) and felt like he had been building towards a big week in the PGA, now played on a more mature Royal Pines layout that has earned plenty of respect among the touring pros.

With the likes of former US Masters champion and world No.7 Scott breathing down his neck, Dodt was forgoing the sports science approach and instead indulging in some sugarcane champagne to calm the nerves.

"I'm going to go and sit on the balcony and maybe have a couple of rum and cokes this afternoon, just to relax, because I do build myself up a bit too much and it's nice to try and break," he said.

"Mum and Dad are here, the in-laws are here. I'll sit on the balcony and take in the view of the ocean and have a drink."

Scott delivered on his intentions to start the tournament strongly, finding some early birdies on the back before finishing with three straight to ensure he can continue the attack from the afternoon groups on Friday.

"It's the last week of the year, there's no 'I'll get 'em next week' and you just have to make it count. It didn't look pretty at the start but somehow I was two-under after three and then hung in there and finished well.

"Maybe that momentum off the last three holes is something to carry over for the rest of the week.

"A quick start and a quick finish adds up to a good score. I was just treading water for a while but those holes ... it was never the perfect number [club]. I was cautious of going over the green in between clubs and you just have to be patient. It paid off because I birdied the last three."

Lyle produced the play of the day with his ace on the par three fifth. He took a seven-iron over the 164-metre distance and it never looked like missing, bouncing at the front the green before making a beeline for the pin. He was three-under with five holes to play before the rain break.

He may not have finished his round but at least Lyle made it onto the course, which was more than could be said for Portugal's Jose-Filipe Lima, who added this tournament onto his Australian swing after playing in the World Cup in Melbourne.

Daylight savings strikes again. Lima failed to show for his 11.15am tee time, instead remaining on the driving range and managing to evade all efforts to track him down. He departed without striking a ball in anger.