Lahiri, Chopra share lead in BILT Open

GREATER NOIDA - Anirban Lahiri of Bangalore and Delhi’s Vikrant Chopra turned in cards of six under 66 to lead the field on day one of the BILT Open golf here Thursday.

Lahiri made eight birdies against two bogeys at the Jaypee Greens on Thursday while Chopra fired a bogey-free round. Ajeetesh Sandhu of Chandigarh and Pune’s Rajiv Datar are one stroke behind the joint leaders in tied third place.

Lahiri, one of the tournament favourites, had a dream start to the event when he picked up birdies on the first three holes. The Asian Tour regular then repeated this feat on the first three holes of the back nine (10th, 11th, 12th). Lahiri, currently fourth on the Aircel PGTI Order of Merit, birdied the 15th and 17th and made bogeys on the 14th and 18th to close with a fabulous 66.

“I had a perfect start to the tournament as I made birdies on the first three holes. I sank some really long putts on the second and third and hit it quite close on the 10th and 11th today. However, my best shot of the day came on the 17th, where I holed it from the bunker (25 yards from the flag) for a birdie. I think couldn’t have asked for a better opening round,” said Lahiri.

“The course at Jaypee Greens provides perfect conditions for a week of intense competition. The fairways and greens are playing really well. Putting will hold the key this week and the winning score could go as low as 15 under,” he said.

Chopra, whose home course is the Noida Golf Club, posted an impeccable 66 in round one to be the joint leader along with Lahiri. Chopra collected birdies on the 10th, 12th, 14th and 18th to be four under at the turn and then went on to consolidate with two more birdies on the second and ninth. On the second, his chip from the fringe of the green landed within a few inches of the pin.

Ajeetesh Sandhu of Chandigarh and Pune’s Rajiv Datar shot identical scores of five under 67 to be tied third.

Himmat Singh Rai, Harendra Gupta, Rahil Gangjee and Amardip Sinh Malik are all in tied fifth place with scores of four under 68.

Mukesh Kumar and Ashok Kumar occupy tied 11th place along with five others at two under 70.