Ho Tram, Vietnam, 03-12-2015
Bhullar, Gangjee and Rai occupy tied seventh in Vietnam
Lahiri lies tied 10th in Bahamas post his three-under-69
Indians Gaganjeet Bhullar, Rahil Gangjee and Himmat Rai were off to a sound start with scores of five-under-66 each at the Asian Tour’s US$1.5 million Ho Tram Open on Thursday. They were in tied seventh and four behind leader Charlie Wi of Korea, who fired a course record of nine-under-62.
Among other Indians, Jeev Milkha Singh (70) was tied 46th, while Shiv Kapur and Arjun Atwal carded 71 to be tied 62nd and Chikkarangappa and Jyoti Randhawa carded 72 each to be tied 75th. Chiragh Kumar and Rashid Khan were tied 93rd at 73 each, while Khalin Joshi (77) and Shubhankar Sharma (78) were further behind in tied 111th and tied 114th respectively.
The Indians fared better on the back-nine in round one. Bhullar, starting on the tenth, had five birdies in his first nine holes and added a sixth on fifth, but finished with a bogey on ninth, his closing hole.
Gangjee started from first and turned in one-under with three birdies and two bogeys, while he had four birdies on the back nine. Himmat, also starting on 10th, birdied four times on the back stretch of the Bluffs Ho Tram Strip, before adding two more birdies and one bogey on the second nine.
Bhullar was pleased with his showing and said, “I hit the ball so good today, hit 16 greens in regulation and it was disappointing to make bogey on my last hole on the ninth. Made six really good birdies, out of which five were from within three feet. I’ve been struggling with my putter a bit, so I’m going to keep working on my stroke after this and hopefully can push on for three rounds.”
On his own season, he added, “The first half of the season, I was really struggling with my ball striking. Second half, I figured out something and I’ve been hitting it really good. But I’m struggling now with my putting. Other than that, my sand play, short game with the lob wedge, it’s definitely improved. Some small things to work on and I’ll be back in the winning circle.”
Elsewhere, at the Hero World Challenge in Bahamas, Anirban Lahiri carded a three-under-69 in the opening round to lie tied 10th and three off the lead. Anirban, who was paired with world no. 1 Jordan Spieth at the elite event featuring a restricted field of 18 of the world’s top professionals, mixed four birdies with a lone bogey on day one.
Lahiri, the world no. 39, birdied the first hole and picked up another stroke on the sixth before dropping a bogey on the par-5 ninth. He collected two more birdies on the back-nine. The Indian star will now be paired with American Chris Kirk in the second round.
About PGTI:
Formed in 2006, Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) is the recognised official body of professional golf in India. PGTI's objective is to promote professional golf in the country, as well as to give players an opportunity to be involved in the decision making on all aspects of the game. Headed by Mr. Srinivasan H R (President), PGTI's governing body comprises leading Indian golf professionals. PGTI currently has over 300 members.
For information on PGTI, please contact:
Nikhil Kalaan
Media Manager - PGTI
Mobile: 9910974846
Email: media@pgtofindia.com
