Basic, Gaunt share lead in 1st round of Open Championship
Aussie pair, Neven Basic and Chris Gaunt grabbed attention in the first round of the Open Championship, as both players gained a lead, consolidating their position on the leaderboard.
The final qualifying event of the Australasian Tour was held at the Kingston Heath course in Melbourne and saw the Aussie pair exhibiting their superb performance on the course.
Basic and Gaunt are aiming for the Open, which is going to be held at Royal Lytham & St Annes in July.
Both players carded three-under 69, gaining a clear lead over their rivals. Neven Basic got off to a promising start, as he reeled off his first birdie on the par-4 1st hole.
After parring the 2nd hole, Basic stunned the spectators, yet again, by launching his second birdie.
Basic seemed to lose his momentum on the 4th hole, as he carded a bogey on the par-4 4th hole. The 5th hole was parred but he faltered again on the next hole, recording his second bogey.
Although he tainted his scorecard with 2 bogeys, he offset the impact on the par-5 7th and par-4 9th, draining birdies.
On the other hand, Chris Gaunt also came off well on the front nine, recording 4 birdies. He bodied his 2nd hole but drained three consecutive birdies on the par-4 3rd, par-4 4th and the difficult par-3 5th hole.
On the back nine, Basic could not show his best performance. However, he managed to card an overall 3 under 69.
The score was high enough to give him a lead. Gaunt also faltered on the back nine, as his scorecard was awash with pars and one bogey.
Although he was not as good on the back nine as he was on the front nine, Gaunt still managed to drain a birdie on the par-5 14th hole. He also carded an overall 3 under 69.
Pumped by the first round lead, Basic said he was hopeful that he would come off equally well in the final round. He added that playing his first major event will be a good experience.
"This is my third go at qualifying. I missed by one about four years ago which hurt. It would be awesome to play in a major, it's something that you have watched on television since you are 10 or 12 years of age so to actual get to play would be fantastic," Basic said.
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