11 June 2021: The grind continues for Anirban Lahiri, as he keeps up his relentless pursuit for a taste of excellence around the lush meadows of the PGA TOUR. The Indian is working his way back from a bout of COVID19 and indications are that he is getting ever closer to a good rhythm. Anirban shot 69 in the opening round, five shots back from Wes Roach, the leader at 7-under. Arjun Atwal made three birdies to enjoy a decent round, but with several low scores up the order, he needs some work on Friday. Atwal shot one-over 72.
Doc Redman, Dustin Johnson, Chesson Hadley and Erik van Rooyen are all tied in second at 65. Jhonattan Vegas worked his way inside the top ten on a 66, one ahead of a dozen golfers who returned home on a 67. That group included Kiradech Aphibarnrat.
It was the embattled Thai golfer’s lowest score on the PGA TOUR in nearly two years, since he made 67 in the 2019 Northern Trust. But he seems to have found a liking to the setup at the Congaree Golf Club. He made six birdies to work his way inside the top ten, the first time he has done that since the Bermuda Championship in 2020.
Anirban played with hawk like focus, working his way around the course with tenacity. At the par-5 second, he was on in two, but a three-putt forced him to settle for par. He made amends with a birdie from twelve feet on the third hole.
But the course took it back from him very soon. At the par-4 sixth, his approach ended up left of the green. Reaching the green in three, Anirban made a two-putt bogey to fall back to even par.
The Indian suffered no further damage though. He marched steadily up the order with birdies at the 13th and 18th holes. At the last, Anirban chipped in his third to finish the day on a positive note.
Kiradech is battling to save his card and a good result this week could help him secure that future. His swing coach Mike Walker is at hand this week, helping the Thai find 12 fairways and 13 greens in regulation.
“Today is a good day, definitely a good start with those two opening birdies and it’s even better that I can play some good golf again. Everything worked pretty well and I managed to make a few birdies out there,” said Kiradech.
“It’s quite a challenging golf course and the fairways and greens are in good shape. I must try to continue building on this and continue to work even harder. If I can do that, I will create opportunities for myself and hopefully this week can go well for me,” he said.
Byeong Hun An also made a 67 and is sitting alongside Kiradech. Satoshi Kodaira and C.T. Pan carded shot 69 and keeping company with Anirban in T31.
Arjun Atwal played some good golf too. Even though four bogeys on the forward stretch upended the Indian’s hopes for a low round, he turned it around in brilliant fashion. Atwal coasted home on a clean run of nine holes including birdies at the third and fourth to end the day in T75, with a 72 to his name.
