Ernie Els leads the BMW International Open on day one – Golf News
Ernie Els fired a flawless nine-under par 63, in the opening round of the BMW International Open, to take a one-stroke lead over a group of four players that also included the home favourite Martin Kaymer.
The tournament is being played at the Golfclub München Eichenried, offering a total prize fund of €2,000,000 to the participants.
The BMW International Open is known for attracting a strong field each year. This year too, the event has reeled in some prominent names, including the likes of former PGA Champion Kaymer, the winner of this year’s Hyundai Tournament
of Champions and the three-time Asian Tour Order of merit winner Thongchai Jaidee.
The reigning Open champion started his campaign in Munich with a birdie on the second hole and followed it by an amazing eagle on the sixth hole. He then added another shot on the ninth hole to reach the turn in four under par.
The back nine of the course witnessed him picking up some more pace, as he managed to drain five more birdies to surge to the top of the leaderboard.
Talking to the European Tour’s official website, he expressed his pleasure in playing at a course that allowed him to create birdie chances throughout the day. Last week, he participated in the US Open at Merion, where not a single
player managed to break the par mark – Even the winner Justin Rose carded an even par score.
“It’s really nice, and just a pleasure to play; not to go through a torture chamber like we did at the US Open, it’s a nice start,” he said.
“It seems like it's really a day of scoring today,” Els continued. “If you shoot a really low one, it's nice. It takes the pressure off the rest of the tournament a little bit. Although you're leading, it doesn't really mean much
until Sunday, but if you get into the race, so to speak, early on in the tournament, it's nice to be right in the hunt.”
Jaidee, in the meantime, is sharing the ninth spot after carding a six under par 66. His performance included eight birdies while conceding just two bogeys.
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