Gaganjeet Bhullar T4 at Russian Open

July 24, 2o14. India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar surged in the leader mix at the M2M Russian Open tied 4th with five under par 67 along with six others. He had a superb scorecard with six birdies, which he began to pick up right from hole number one. The solid start comes as a big relief to Bhullar who has been working on his game and mind to get ahead in his rankings from the current 266. The talented golfer has been having a rough season with his best finish in the last six tournaments at the BMW International Open with a T33.

Bhullar, a winner in his homeland on The Challenge Tour in 2011 and a runner-up on Indian soil at last season’s Avantha Masters, was pleased with his play from tee to green.

“I hit the ball really well today,” he said. “I hit 15 greens in regulation and gave myself a lot of opportunities. I hit the ball close, so I didn’t have to do much scrambling and the birdies were all from about ten to 12 feet.”

Englishman David Horsey birdied four of his final six holes Thursday for a 7-under 65 and a one-stroke lead in the first round of the Russian Open. Former French Open tennis champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov, one of 10 Russians in the field, shot an 11-over 83 with one birdie, six bogeys and three double-bogeys.

Horsey has four top-10 finishes this season, including a share of ninth in last month’s Lyoness Open in Austria according to AP. “I have been working hard on my game the last 9-to-10 months and while it’s been a bit inconsistent, the good stuff has been really good and it’s just that inconsistency and a lack of confidence with it that’s hurt a bit,” the 29-year-old Horsey said in an interview to AP. “However, that comes with the territory when you bring in changes, but they’re starting to bed in and I’m starting to get more comfortable.”

Gaganjeet Bhullar was joined at five under par by Jack Doherty, South Africans Oliver Bekker and Louis de Jager, Swede Rikard Karlberg, German Max Kieffer, Belgium’s Thomas Pieters and Australian Jack Wilson.