Bangalore teenager Manoj S. is on his way to the lead on the opening day of the Jaipur Open at the Rambagh Golf Club on Tuesday. Image courtesy of PGTI.
By Rahul Banerji
Rookie Manoj S fired a 7-under par 63 for a one-shot lead in the first round in the Rs 1 crore Jaipur Open at Rambagh Golf Club on Tuesday.
The event is presented by Victorious Choice and powered by Shubhashish Homes, PGTI said.
Bangalore-based Manoj, with an impressive six top-10s in his last eight starts on the PGTI, continued that form, sinking eight birdies against one drop shot on the day.
Shaurya Bhattacharya, Divyanshu Bajaj, Kushal Singh and Arjun Prasad recorded six under 64, hot on the heels of the 17-year-old.
PGTI Order of Merit leader Yuvraj Sandhu opened with a 65, including a golden run of five consecutive birdies.
The golfer from Chandigarh was tied for sixth place along with Harsh Gangwar and Badal Hossain from Dhaka.
Manoj was two under the front nine before turning on the heat with five birdies on the way back to the clubhouse.
Hot putter
The teenager’s hot putter was unaffected by the round and saw him drain three 20-footers and a 15-footer for birdies.
“I played a junior event here about three years ago and did well on that occasion. So I am familiar with this course,” Manoj said later.
“It is important to place your tee shots well here, as a number of fairways have trees in the middle.
“I was accurate off the tee today, finding 15 greens in regulation and also scoring birdies on all four par-5 holes.
“The key to my good form in recent weeks has been hitting the ball consistently, which has created numerous scoring opportunities for me.
“My ball striking once again provided a perfect start to the week.”
Veer Ahlawat, last year’s PGTI Order of Merit champion, carded a 67 to finish tied for 12e.
Prakhar Asawa from Jaipur had the best day among the local professionals with a score of 68 to 19e place.
Also read: Jaipur Open starts at Rambagh on Tuesday with quality field
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