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Three share lead at European Tour's Spanish Open

VALENCIA, Spain, April 18 (UPI) -- Gary Stal shot a bogey-free 4-under-par 68 Thursday and owns a share of first place at the European Tour's Spanish Open.

Stal is tied with Felipe Aguilar and Morten Orum Madsen for the lead after the first round of the tournament. Eight players are a stroke back at 3-under and 11 others are just two strokes off the lead.

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Stal, 21, is a 2012 Challenge Tour graduate. He took a share of the lead with a steady round. He made the turn at 1-under after a birdie at the sixth hole. Back-to-back birdies at Nos. 10 and 11 pulled him close to Aguilar's early lead and a birdie at 15 allowed him to match the 68.

Aguilar had a pair of birdies and a pair of bogeys in his first eight holes Thursday but also racked up four birdies in the next seven holes.

Madsen, like Stal a 2012 Challenge Tour graduate, played the second nine at the Parador de El Saler course first Thursday. He had a bogey at the 12th hole but also four birdies over the span of Nos. 11-16. A birdie at the par-5 fifth allowed him to claim part of the lead.

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