Ashok Kumar, the 21-year-old rookie professional, gave ample evidence of his prodigious talent when he shot into the lead in the inaugural Rs One million Tata Steel Open, being played at the Beldih and Golmuri Club courses, in Jamshedpur, on Thursday.
Ashok, who was the No 1 amateur in the country before turning pro in February, shot a three-under 69 in trying situations to grab a one-stroke lead over Feroz Ali and amateur Amit Khaitan, who shot two-under 70 each.
Mukesh Kumar (Mhow), Amritinder Singh (Chandigarh), Zai Kipgen and Pappan (both Delhi), were tied for the third place at one-under 71. All the players teed off at the par-72 Beldih course.
At the par-70 Golmuri course, the best score was a level-par 70 from veteran Rohtas Singh of Delhi and Sanjay Kumar of Lucknow. They were overall tied for seventh place along with Noida's Amit Dube, Indrajit Bhalotia and Rahil Gangjee (both Kolkata), who shot level-par 72 at Beldih course.
The tricky and small greens of both the courses put an end to all talks about the scores going extremely low. The premium was on accuracy in approach shots, and it was Ashok Kumar who came out trumps, especially on his second nine.
Playing at the par-72 Beldih course, Ashok got off to a bad start with a bogey on the long and difficult par-3 opening hole. Just when it looked as if the 21-year-old was getting back into the groove with birdies on the second and third, he had a slight loss in concentration and made bogies on the fifth, sixth and the eighth holes to make the turn at two-over.
However, there was no stopping the youngster on the back nine as he sizzled the course with five birdies, all of them resulting from birdie putts within six feet, ample proof of his radar-like approach shots. He birdied the 11th, 12th and 13th holes, followed by two more at the 16th and 18th holes.
"I basically decided to be more aggressive on the second nine. I was getting extremely frustrated after making three bogies in four holes. The strategy paid off," said Ashok, who has finished in the top-10 in his last five tournaments and is currently sixth in the Money List.
Feroz Ali, searching for his first victory on the Hero Honda Indian Golf Tour this season, gave himself a chance with an opening round of two-under 70. In his front nine, the Kolkata-based former Indian Open champion made birdies on the fourth and ninth holes and a bogey on the par-5 seventh. On the back nine, he made a bogey on the 11th, followed by birdies on the 14th and 18th.
Khaitan leads amateurs: Youngster Amit Khaitan, hailed as one of the brightest talents from Jamshedpur, lived up to his reputation and shot a brilliant two-under 70 to lead the amateur section. The 21-year-old, who plays to a plus-1 handicap at Beldih, started with a bogey, but made five birdies and a double bogey from a plugged lie on the 10th hole.
Scores (after 18 holes):
At Beldih, par 72: 69 _ Ashok Kumar; 70 _ Feroz Ali; 71 _ Pappan, Zai Kipgen, Mukesh Kumar, Amritinder Singh; 72 _ Indrajit Bhalotia, Amit Dube, Rahil Gangjee; 73 _ Sheeraz Kalra, Amateurs: 70 _ Amit Khaitan.
At Golmuri, par 70: 70 _ Rohtas Singh; 71 _ Kshitij Kumar, Raja Ali; 72 _ Pritam Saikia, Yusuf Ali, Balbir Singh Verma, Randhir Gotra, Shiv Prakash; Amateurs: 77 _ Ravi Rungta.