CRANS-MONTANA, Switzerland — Matt Fitzpatrick, seeking his third victory at the European Masters, was overshadowed by his younger brother in a low-scoring first round Thursday at the beautiful Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club in the Alps.

Alex Fitzpatrick shot a seven-under 63 to share the lead with Spain’s Alfredo Garcia-Heredia, who is ranked 629th, in the European Tour event.

Alex tied for fifth on his debut at Crans-Montana last year, while 30-year-old Matt (five years older than the brothers) won the tournament in 2017 and 2018 and is aiming to become only the fourth player to win it three times after Seve Ballesteros, Harold Henning and Dai Rees.

Matt Fitzpatrick shot a 66 and was three shots behind the leader in the group of six. The 2022 U.S. Open champion is the highest-ranked player in the field at 27th.

British Matt Wallace posted a bogey-free 64 and shared third place with Daan Huizing, Jason Scrivener and Henrik Norlander.