Shubhankar Sharma got off to one of his best starts on the European Tour this season, with a card of 5-under 67 that put him into the Top-10 at the end of the first round of the Hero Open at St. Andrews, Scotland.
Sharma, who was brilliant in the Pro-Am with a double digit under par score, carried on from there in the second edition of the Hero Open.
Of the other Indians Shiv Kapur shot 72 and was T-54, while Gaganjeet Bhullar and SSP Chawrasia carded 76 each and Ajeetesh Sandhu was further down at 77.
Sharma, who won twice in 2018 on European Tour has been looking for a title since then. He started from the 10th and after two pars he had four birdies in a row. Two more birdies on sixth and seventh, his 15th and 16th holes of the day, got him to 6-under but a closing bogey saw him fall to 5-under for the day.
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“I am happy with the way I am playing. I need some more consistency in the scores,” said Sharma.
Calum Hill carded the lowest round of his European Tour career as he took a one stroke lead at the Hero Open. One of the day’s early starters, the 26-year-old made the most of benign conditions as he signed for a bogey free round of 63, setting a new course record in the process on the Torrance Course at Fairmont St Andrews.
Scandinavian Mixed Masters winner Jonathan Caldwell of Northern Ireland was second with a card of 64, one stroke clear of Ross Fisher of England, American Chase Hanna and Robin Sciot-Siegrist of France.