By Rahul Banerji
A brilliant opening round from Bangladesh golfer Jamal Hossain gave him the lead at the Rs 1.5 crore Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational presented by TAKE Sports in Chandigarh on Thursday.
Hossain’s 7-under 65 at one of his favourite venues, the Chandigarh Golf Club put him a shot ahead of Delhi’s Sachin Baisoya, who struck a flawless 66 to be placed second.
Angad Cheema of Chandigarh was the highest-placed among the local professionals as he carded an error-free 67 to hold third place.
Chandigarh’s Harendra Gupta, Aadil Bedi and Amrit Lal all shot 68s to be tied fourth, the PGTI said.
Indian golf legend and tournament host Jeev started with a steady level-par 72 on his home course to share 47th place along with Rahil Gangjee and Rashid Khan.
After a couple of early birdies, Jamal Hossain’s fired up his round with a chip-in for par on the seventh instead of a bogey after managing to get himself out of a tough spot.
Thereafter, Jamal would drop just one shot on the ninth and pick up six birdies in exchange.
Good gains
Three of his gains on this stretch came from 15 to 20 feet conversions while the other three were tap-ins thanks to his accurate wedge shots.
Jamal said, “I began the week with a lot of positivity because I’ve done extremely well at the Chandigarh Golf Club in recent times having bagged top-5 finishes including a runner-up result in my last three outings here.
“I enjoy playing here as I feel it is quite similar to my home course Kurmitola Golf Club in Dhaka.
“I’m also riding high on the confidence of my good form this year. I won earlier this year and registered a runner-up and a fourth-place finish.
“I then had to take a break for four events as my son was unwell. But this round brings my season back on track. The par save on seven gave me the boost I needed today.”
Tata Steel PGTI Ranking leader Om Prakash Chouhan had a 69 for tied ninth while local favourite Yuvraj Singh Sandhu was a further shot back in tied 17th.
Last week’s winner Jairaj Singh Sandhu, another Chandigarh golfer, returned a 74 to share 82nd place.
Round 1 leaders
65: Jamal Hossain
66: Sachin Baisoya
67: Angad Cheema
Also read: Sixth edition of Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational set to tee off
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