Rookie Joshi and world record holder Chapchai share lead.
New Delhi, March 6: Rookie Khalin Joshi got off to a dream debut on
the Asian Tour with a six-under 66 on his first day of the SAIL-SBI
Open presented by Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, as he shared
the lead with former champion and world record holder, Thailand’s
Chapchai Nirat in the first round of the tournament that got underway
at the fabulous Delhi Golf Club on Wednesday.
Chapchai and Joshi lead by one shot over Qualifying School winner Chan
Kim of the United States.
Chapchai launched his quest to end a four-year winless and snared
eight birdies against two bogeys in the morning session. In the
afternoon he was joined by Joshi at the top. Joshi, the top Indian
Amateur in 2012, turned pro at the start of the year and on Wednesday
he had nine birdied against three bogeys on a day he called as ‘dream
debut’.
Chiragh Kumar shot a solid 68 to share third place with Bangladeshi
Siddikur while Shiv Kapur (69) failed to capitalise on his magnificent
outward 29 when he came home in 40 after taking a quadruple bogey
eight on the sixth hole. Manav Jaini, another DGC star, who has some
excellent finishes in Asian Tour events at his home course, also
carded a creditable 69.
Defending champion Anirban Lahiri started with a sedate one-under 71,
while Rikard Karlberg champion in 2010 shot even par 72. Four-time
Asian Tour winner, Gaganjeet Bhullar went three-over 75.
Khalin Joshi was ecstatic with his round. He said, “It was a great
start, but I will take it. I putted really well today. I’ve been
hitting the ball well the past few weeks but the putter was hot today,
made quite a few. Hit a great tee shot on seven to two inches, wish it
was a hole in one but it’s okay.”
The young Bangalorean added, “I’m going to approach the rest of the
week like how I did today, just play within myself. This is the first
week I am not playing with my driver. I’ll do that the whole week.
Just keep the same attitude.”
Speaking of his fellow Bangalorean, Anirban Lahiri, the defending
champion, Joshi said, “Anirban is a great friend of mine and I look up
to him. I’m looking forward to doing something this week. It will mean
the world to me, if I can win my first Asian Tour tournament as a pro.
I’m looking forward to it.”
Joshi, who turned pro at the start of the season, added, “I feel I was
ready to turn pro, so I did that, since I had some very seasons as an
amateur. Last year, I was number one on the amateur tour. I played for
Indian junior and amateur team for six years. Shot a 62 at my home
course at the KGA in Bangalore last year. Finished third in the Nomura
Cup which was a good thing. So, the decision to turn pro was natural.
The 29-year-old Chapchai, whose last victory was in the SAIL-SBI Open
in 2009 when he set a new world record for 72-holes with his winning
32-under-par 256 total, wielded a hot putter to move up the
leaderboard.
“My putting was very good today. I made a lot of one putts out there,
probably took 27 or 28 putts,” said Chapchai, who played alongside
Kapur.
“Shiv played well on our front nine (on the back) and then I played
well coming in. I stuck to my game plan. It’s a tough course as the
fairways are small. But if you can hit fairways, you can make birdies
as you’ve probably got a short iron into the greens.”
His only disappointing were two three-putt bogeys at the 10th and
ninth holes. “I started on 10 with a three putt and finished at nine
with a three putt, so that was not so good. But it was still pretty
good overall. I stuck to my new putting routine and didn’t take too
much time over my putts. I feel confident for the rest of the week,”
said Chapchai, who is seeking a fourth Asian Tour title.
Chan produced two chip-in birdies as he moved into contention in what
is his rookie season on the Asian Tour, which is celebrating its
milestone 10th season in 2013.
“I struggled two weeks ago in Myanmar. To finally put together a good
round feels good,” he said.
The strapping Korean-American was stunned when he stepped foot for the
first time to the Delhi Golf Club. “I was pretty shocked when I got
here. My partners in Myanmar were telling me how narrow it was and I
looked online and it didn’t look as narrow. But when I stepped on the
first tee on Monday, I kind of got a taste of how it really is,” he
smiled.
Chiragh Kumar, who lost his full playing rights after finishing 74th
on the Order of Merit last season, was delighted to get into the title
mix with a 68 which included five birdies against a lone dropped shot.Kapur strikes disaster on sixth, but home boys do well.
Shiv Kapur, who has won his last two strokeplay events, maintained his
humorous side, as he came with a 69 that included a quadruple bogey on
the sixth (his 15th hole) on the first day of the SAIL-SBI Open
presented by Incredible India on Wednesday.
He said, “Like I was telling Dean Jones (the great Australian
cricketer who was following Shiv’s group), the front nine was like
India and the back nine was like Australia (in recent cricket Test
matches). It was quite disappointing to finish that way after my
start. Shooting 29 at the front nine, I set myself up for a possibly a
very low number. I just had one bad hole on six with a quadruple bogey
eight. I don’t think I’ve ever made an eight on that hole in my 20
years of playing here.”
He added, “It’s one of those things that happen in golf and take it on
the chin and move on. I hit my tee shot right and hit the monument and
went further right in the bush. Tried to chip out but it clipped the
stone and went back into the bush and had to take an unplayable inside
the bush. Back on the fairway and hit my fifth to the back of the
green and then missed the putt.”
He admitted that the first nine (back nine of the course) was a great
run. “I was playing great. Hitting a lot of good shots and making a
lot of putts.” He had five birdies and an eagle on 18th.
Then he said, “I was having visions of going double digits under par.
You take what you get and move on.”
Chiragh, who has grown up at this course like Shiv Kapur, said, “It
was a good round, a good start to the tournament. I had a few chances,
which I missed out on but I’m not going to complain. 68 is a good
round and I’m quite happy with the way I played. I hit the ball pretty
good off the tee and my second shots were good as well and I putted
pretty well. Overall, it was a great day. I hope it is a sign of
things to come. “
On his first round, he said, “I made a few long putts today which
feels good. The putts were between 15 and 25 feet.”
He did admit, “The other advantage I have this week is that I know
this course pretty well having played here all my life. I’ve won a big
event on this course back in 2010 and performed well in a number of
Asian Tour events here including the 2011 Indian Open when I was
runner-up.”
Manav Jaini also worked on the home advantage at the DGC and he has
finished second at the Panasonic Open in 2011, when Anirban Lahiri won
the event. Jaini has a few other top-5s also at DGC.
New Delhi, March 6: Rookie Khalin Joshi got off to a dream debut on
the Asian Tour with a six-under 66 on his first day of the SAIL-SBI
Open presented by Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, as he shared
the lead with former champion and world record holder, Thailand’s
Chapchai Nirat in the first round of the tournament that got underway
at the fabulous Delhi Golf Club on Wednesday.
Chapchai and Joshi lead by one shot over Qualifying School winner Chan
Kim of the United States.
Chapchai launched his quest to end a four-year winless and snared
eight birdies against two bogeys in the morning session. In the
afternoon he was joined by Joshi at the top. Joshi, the top Indian
Amateur in 2012, turned pro at the start of the year and on Wednesday
he had nine birdied against three bogeys on a day he called as ‘dream
debut’.
Chiragh Kumar shot a solid 68 to share third place with Bangladeshi
Siddikur while Shiv Kapur (69) failed to capitalise on his magnificent
outward 29 when he came home in 40 after taking a quadruple bogey
eight on the sixth hole. Manav Jaini, another DGC star, who has some
excellent finishes in Asian Tour events at his home course, also
carded a creditable 69.
Defending champion Anirban Lahiri started with a sedate one-under 71,
while Rikard Karlberg champion in 2010 shot even par 72. Four-time
Asian Tour winner, Gaganjeet Bhullar went three-over 75.
Khalin Joshi was ecstatic with his round. He said, “It was a great
start, but I will take it. I putted really well today. I’ve been
hitting the ball well the past few weeks but the putter was hot today,
made quite a few. Hit a great tee shot on seven to two inches, wish it
was a hole in one but it’s okay.”
The young Bangalorean added, “I’m going to approach the rest of the
week like how I did today, just play within myself. This is the first
week I am not playing with my driver. I’ll do that the whole week.
Just keep the same attitude.”
Speaking of his fellow Bangalorean, Anirban Lahiri, the defending
champion, Joshi said, “Anirban is a great friend of mine and I look up
to him. I’m looking forward to doing something this week. It will mean
the world to me, if I can win my first Asian Tour tournament as a pro.
I’m looking forward to it.”
Joshi, who turned pro at the start of the season, added, “I feel I was
ready to turn pro, so I did that, since I had some very seasons as an
amateur. Last year, I was number one on the amateur tour. I played for
Indian junior and amateur team for six years. Shot a 62 at my home
course at the KGA in Bangalore last year. Finished third in the Nomura
Cup which was a good thing. So, the decision to turn pro was natural.
The 29-year-old Chapchai, whose last victory was in the SAIL-SBI Open
in 2009 when he set a new world record for 72-holes with his winning
32-under-par 256 total, wielded a hot putter to move up the
leaderboard.
“My putting was very good today. I made a lot of one putts out there,
probably took 27 or 28 putts,” said Chapchai, who played alongside
Kapur.
“Shiv played well on our front nine (on the back) and then I played
well coming in. I stuck to my game plan. It’s a tough course as the
fairways are small. But if you can hit fairways, you can make birdies
as you’ve probably got a short iron into the greens.”
His only disappointing were two three-putt bogeys at the 10th and
ninth holes. “I started on 10 with a three putt and finished at nine
with a three putt, so that was not so good. But it was still pretty
good overall. I stuck to my new putting routine and didn’t take too
much time over my putts. I feel confident for the rest of the week,”
said Chapchai, who is seeking a fourth Asian Tour title.
Chan produced two chip-in birdies as he moved into contention in what
is his rookie season on the Asian Tour, which is celebrating its
milestone 10th season in 2013.
“I struggled two weeks ago in Myanmar. To finally put together a good
round feels good,” he said.
The strapping Korean-American was stunned when he stepped foot for the
first time to the Delhi Golf Club. “I was pretty shocked when I got
here. My partners in Myanmar were telling me how narrow it was and I
looked online and it didn’t look as narrow. But when I stepped on the
first tee on Monday, I kind of got a taste of how it really is,” he
smiled.
Chiragh Kumar, who lost his full playing rights after finishing 74th
on the Order of Merit last season, was delighted to get into the title
mix with a 68 which included five birdies against a lone dropped shot.Kapur strikes disaster on sixth, but home boys do well.
Shiv Kapur, who has won his last two strokeplay events, maintained his
humorous side, as he came with a 69 that included a quadruple bogey on
the sixth (his 15th hole) on the first day of the SAIL-SBI Open
presented by Incredible India on Wednesday.
He said, “Like I was telling Dean Jones (the great Australian
cricketer who was following Shiv’s group), the front nine was like
India and the back nine was like Australia (in recent cricket Test
matches). It was quite disappointing to finish that way after my
start. Shooting 29 at the front nine, I set myself up for a possibly a
very low number. I just had one bad hole on six with a quadruple bogey
eight. I don’t think I’ve ever made an eight on that hole in my 20
years of playing here.”
He added, “It’s one of those things that happen in golf and take it on
the chin and move on. I hit my tee shot right and hit the monument and
went further right in the bush. Tried to chip out but it clipped the
stone and went back into the bush and had to take an unplayable inside
the bush. Back on the fairway and hit my fifth to the back of the
green and then missed the putt.”
He admitted that the first nine (back nine of the course) was a great
run. “I was playing great. Hitting a lot of good shots and making a
lot of putts.” He had five birdies and an eagle on 18th.
Then he said, “I was having visions of going double digits under par.
You take what you get and move on.”
Chiragh, who has grown up at this course like Shiv Kapur, said, “It
was a good round, a good start to the tournament. I had a few chances,
which I missed out on but I’m not going to complain. 68 is a good
round and I’m quite happy with the way I played. I hit the ball pretty
good off the tee and my second shots were good as well and I putted
pretty well. Overall, it was a great day. I hope it is a sign of
things to come. “
On his first round, he said, “I made a few long putts today which
feels good. The putts were between 15 and 25 feet.”
He did admit, “The other advantage I have this week is that I know
this course pretty well having played here all my life. I’ve won a big
event on this course back in 2010 and performed well in a number of
Asian Tour events here including the 2011 Indian Open when I was
runner-up.”
Manav Jaini also worked on the home advantage at the DGC and he has
finished second at the Panasonic Open in 2011, when Anirban Lahiri won
the event. Jaini has a few other top-5s also at DGC.
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