2010 Asia-Pacific Panasonic Open: India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar grabs early lead
The Indian, Gaganjeet Bhullar posted a score of four-under-par 67 in the first round of the 2010 Asia-Pacific Panasonic Open, currently underway at the Rokko Kokusai Golf Club's East course. He joined the lead of Korea’s S.K. Ho, Japan's Shintaro Kai and
Kazuhiko Hosokawa.
The 21-year-old was the only player to post a bogey-free round and chances are that he will claim his third Asian Tour victory soon. Bhullar carded four birdies on the par-71 course, which is ranked as one of the toughest courses in Asia,
as it is known for its long pars, undulating greens and narrow roughs.
Apart from him, Ho and Hosokawa also carded the same score and like their identical scores, they both have eight career victories in Japan. However, they have made an appearance here after receiving the invitation from the sponsors.
Moving forward, the trio was followed by Daisuke Maruyama and Marcus Fraser at the second spot. They both posted a score of 68 each on a day of high scoring. Other than the leading groups, the two other players shined miraculously in the round which was
accompanied by bad weather. Ryo Ishikawa managed to remain within par by sticking with a 69. He carded six birdies while the current Asian Tour Order of Merit leader, Noh Seung-yul made a 70.
Now coming towards the weather conditions, strong torrential rains forced the organizers to reduce the tournament to 54-holes. This was also the reason for Thursday’s round getting cancelled.
Moving back to the Indian, he was the only man in the 132-man field to have been spot–less, which put a big curve on his face. His scorecard included a magnificent run of three birdies starting from the 12th hole all the way to the 14th.
Bhullar seems quite satisfied with his performance, especially after he realized that he was the only player in 132 golfers to be bogey–free. He said that the course layout was a challenging one while the weather made things even worse, but even then, he
kept himself calm and consistent.
Media reports also suggested that Bhullar showed no signs of uncomforting. In fact, he was calm and the near he went to the closing holes, his consistency increased. He stroked the ball well and kept everything on the fairway.
Similarly, Ho reproduced some of his old form and jolted the course with three birdies on his back nine. Although, his game wasn’t consistent during the last two years as he only managed to finish twice in top 10s. But this time, he once again appeared to
be the old Ho known to all. He made a lot of putts ranging from seven to eight meters, which was pretty good.
As for Ishikawa, he kept his claim of winning the Panasonic Open alive with a terrific round. Later, while talking to the media, he said that he was happy with his performance although, it made him tired. He added that if the weather would have been pleasant,
he would have enjoyed the game and in that case, the results would also have been even better.
These were the players who were pleased with their performances. Now coming to the ones who were all teary after the first round; Noh, who posted a 70 said that his shots were terrible. Moreover, his swings didn’t respond to his actions either. The weather
was also so disastrous that he wanted to catch a plane and go back home.
This is it for the first round of the 2010 Asia-Pacific Panasonic Open. Gaganjeet Bhullar, S.K. Ho, Shintaro Kai and Kazuhiko Hosokawa took the early lead by posting scores of 4 under.
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