Shubhankar Sharma sits T7 after opening day at Royal Liverpool

By Rahul Banerji

Two-time DP World (European) Tour winner Shubhankar Sharma made a strong start to his campaign in the 151^st Open Championship at Hoylake, finishing day one in a tie for seventh place.

Sharma, who turns 27 on the day shot a 3 under 68 on a day favoured golfers struggled at the Royal Liverpool links to sit two shots behind joint leaders Christo Lamprecht, Emiliano Grillo and Tommy Fleetwood, who all had 5 under 66s.

The surprise package of the day was towering South African amateur Lamprecht who held his own in a field of top-quality professionals to set the early benchmark in changeable conditions.

Making his Open debut, Lamprecht, playing alongside mentor Louis Oosthuizen, made a fast start with three birdies on the first six holes and even a bogey after the turn did not slow him up as he brought in a nerveless 66 on the day.

Shubhankar’s 68 included four birdies against one shot dropped early in the round. Starting out amongst the final few groups, he finished in near-darkness but it was a solid performance and one that left him more than happy.

“Three under is a solid start, especially at a major championship, and I couldn’t have asked for anything better. Hit the ball really well off the tee, and was in control throughout the round.

Mental strength

“Also, I was mentally quite stable till the end which showed in the par save on 16 where I was out of position, the only time I was out of position all day,” said Sharma, in his third Open appearance.

“I laid up and made an up and down from about 88 yards for par. Very solid, all departments were clicking and I was calm throughout, so I’m very happy.

“The birthday bit can wait. We did some good preparation before this event when I was here three weeks ago. It was good to get a look at the course, have three rounds before the event started.

“I’m really happy that my work has paid off. Very proud of the way I played, I was rarely out of position. Made lots of pars as well. It was a solid round. I couldn’t have asked for anything better.”

Shubhankar was 2 under after his first five holes and the only blemish on his card came on the par-4 seventh.

Making up

Two birdies on the back nine thereafter helped Shubhankar make up ground and seal a place in the top 10 even with his round taking over five hours to complete.

Local favourite Tommy Fleetwood and Emiliano Grillo of Argentina joined Lamprecht on 5 under 66s even as favoured players struggled to stay in the mix for the weekend.

Scottish Open winner Rory McIlroy had an early birdie but followed that by getting into trouble including missed pars from close. A massive birdie putt on the back nine though settled the nerves somewhat and the 2014 winner was able put his round back on course.

Jordan Spieth, winner in 2017 stayed in contention on 2 under 69, one shot behind US Open winner Wyndham Clark while PGA champion Brooks Koepka overcame a slow start to finish on 1 under 70 alongside world number one Scottie Scheffler. 

Defending champion Cameron Smith of Australia dropped five shots against four birdies for a 1 over 72, leaving him with plenty to do in the push to retain his title won at St Andrews last year.

Day’s best

The story of the day though was scripted by the giant Lamprecht who later said the support of Oosthuizen was crucial to his success. 

“I think that helped a lot with my score today,” the amateur said.  “Having someone that I know very well and is a ginormous mentor for me that I’ve played previously with kind of helped me feel a little bit more at home and at ease.

“Louis was by far my favourite player growing up. I’ve kind of grown up, known him personally, and watching him play, it’s pretty amazing. I don’t think I’ve ever beaten him. I guess beating him today was really nice.”

Local lad Tommy Fleetwood rode huge home support later said it had been pretty much the perfect opening round. 

“It was very cool, and I think you can’t ask for more from the fans and the support. They were so great to me today. It’s such a special opportunity to play so close to home, to have that support and play an Open. I’m glad I gave them some good golf to watch. 

“For any tournament, you just want to get off to a fast start. It’s not really been my strength recently. I’ve started tournaments pretty slow, so to get something going today felt really good. 

“As first rounds go, that’s absolutely the one you wanted, and to get off to a good start feels good.” 

Also read: All bets are off as 151st Open set for tee-off at Royal Liverpool