Kuala Lumpur:
In-form Rahil Gangjee's tidy opening round of four-under 68 had the Kolkata golfer three shots off lead at tied ninth but seasoned pro Jyoti Randhawa stares at an early exit after a terrible start in the Malaysian Open here on Thursday.
Gangjee, who was in title contention in the Avantha Masters back home last month, showed the kind of form he is in and dropped just one bogey as against five birdies to remain three shots behind Rhys Davies and Ignacio Garrido who shared the lead at seven-under.
One shot behind Gangjee at the 69th place were fellow Kolkatan SSP Chowrasia and Digvijay Singh.
Two-time winner Arjun Atwal had a rather sedate start to his round and the US-based Indian shared the 48th place with rising star Gaganjeet Bhullar.
Caddie-turned-pro C Muniyappa was tied 71st after carding one-over 73, two shots ahead of Anirban Lahiri (tied 105th).
Randhawa had a nightmarish start and playing his back nine first, the lanky golfer was four-over at the turn and in all, managed five bogeys, one double bogey and a couple of birdies.
Lightning threats dropped early curtains on the proceedings with Himmat Rai (15 holes) and Shiv Kapur (17 holes) yet to complete their round in the USD two million tournament co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.
Gangjee's was the best show by an Indian at the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club on Thursday and the diminutive pro looked in brilliant form as he sunk three birdies in the bogey-free front nine.
Gangjee nailed birdies on the 10th and 13th as well to go five-under before dropping his lone bogey on the par-four 16th.
"I'm very happy with my score. But it was really hot today," Gangjee later said.
"I got off to a really good start on the front nine and that really got me comfortable. It's not like I was thinking about the score but it is really nice to play when you are comfortable," he said.
Gangjee said he has to learn how to cope up with pressure especially when he is in the title hunt.
"It was just pure pressure (at the Avantha Masters in India). I have been in contention on two occasions (at the King's Cup in Thailand last year) and need to start adapting to this type of situations.
"I have been trying to put more pressure on myself by having a few matches with Chowrasia back home in India. It was fun and he put me in a lot of pressure situations. It was a one-on-one between us but we played it in stroke play format. It was really good preparation for me," Gangjee added.
Gangjee, who was in title contention in the Avantha Masters back home last month, showed the kind of form he is in and dropped just one bogey as against five birdies to remain three shots behind Rhys Davies and Ignacio Garrido who shared the lead at seven-under.
One shot behind Gangjee at the 69th place were fellow Kolkatan SSP Chowrasia and Digvijay Singh.
Two-time winner Arjun Atwal had a rather sedate start to his round and the US-based Indian shared the 48th place with rising star Gaganjeet Bhullar.
Caddie-turned-pro C Muniyappa was tied 71st after carding one-over 73, two shots ahead of Anirban Lahiri (tied 105th).
Randhawa had a nightmarish start and playing his back nine first, the lanky golfer was four-over at the turn and in all, managed five bogeys, one double bogey and a couple of birdies.
Lightning threats dropped early curtains on the proceedings with Himmat Rai (15 holes) and Shiv Kapur (17 holes) yet to complete their round in the USD two million tournament co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.
Gangjee's was the best show by an Indian at the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club on Thursday and the diminutive pro looked in brilliant form as he sunk three birdies in the bogey-free front nine.
Gangjee nailed birdies on the 10th and 13th as well to go five-under before dropping his lone bogey on the par-four 16th.
"I'm very happy with my score. But it was really hot today," Gangjee later said.
"I got off to a really good start on the front nine and that really got me comfortable. It's not like I was thinking about the score but it is really nice to play when you are comfortable," he said.
Gangjee said he has to learn how to cope up with pressure especially when he is in the title hunt.
"It was just pure pressure (at the Avantha Masters in India). I have been in contention on two occasions (at the King's Cup in Thailand last year) and need to start adapting to this type of situations.
"I have been trying to put more pressure on myself by having a few matches with Chowrasia back home in India. It was fun and he put me in a lot of pressure situations. It was a one-on-one between us but we played it in stroke play format. It was really good preparation for me," Gangjee added.
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