Lahiri makes a statement of intent at Memorial with 5-under round

By Rahul Banerji

Anirban Lahiri matched one of his best rounds of the season with a sparkling 5-under par round of 67 for a share of third place at the Memorial Tournament on the Muirfield Village Golf Course in Ohio, USA, on Thursday.

Lahiri, who sits 166^th in the FedEx Cup standings and 252^nd in the Official Golf World Rankings was two behind day one leader Ryan Moore (65) and one shot shy of the resurgent Jordan Speith (66).

Big-hitting Australian Marc Leishman, Martin Kaymer of Germany and Americans Vaughn Taylor and Bud Cauley were tied alongside Lahiri. Shubhankar Sharma though endured a disappointing day with a 1-over 73 and T66th place besides FedEx standings leader Matt Kuchar among 10 others.

Follow the action here at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide 

Perrenial favourite and five-time winner Tiger Woods, whose group was put on the clock for slow progress after their first 10 holes, brought in a 2-under round of 70 playing alongside reigning FedExCup champion Justin Rose and defending champion at Memorial, Bryson DeChambeau.

Good start

Lahiri started strongly with two birdies in his first five holes. He dropped a shot but gained in back almost immediately to make the turn on 2-under 34. He was bogey once more on his in-bound nine against an eary birdie, but three gained shots between the 14^th and 16^th holes put the round back on track.

Lahiri calls Memorial – played at Jack Nicklaus’ course near Columbus – one of his favourite events. He finished T2 in 2017, his best performance on the PGA Tour, and was T37 last year.

Tiger mixed four birdies with two bogeys and was left scrambling to get back on the clock as Rose and DeChambeau struggled for accuracy, though it must be remembered that when he last won the Memorial in 2012, he had opened with a 70 as well..

“That (being timed) was frustrating, because we still had the last eight holes we were on the clock. I did have to speed up,” he said. “We walked quicker. We got to the ball, slowed it back down trying to get in our natural rhythm.”

“The group ahead of us, JT (Justin Thomas) doesn’t take a lot of time, Rory (McIlroy) plays quick, and Jordan (Spieth) was 7-under through 13 holes. So they’re obviously playing fast. And we were obviously not,” he was quoted as saying on the PGA Tour website.

Diksha aces in Switzerland

At Puidoux, Switzerland, Diksha Dagar hit a hole-in-one in the Lavaux Ladies Championship late on Wednesday for a 2-under 70 overall and a tie for sixth place with two birdies, two bogeys and the ace.

Dagar, winner of the Women’s South African Open, recorded her first hole in one on the international stage as a professional.

Also read: Lahiri out to redeem Tour season at Memorial