May 02, 2018: India’s Ajeetesh Sandhu emerged as the first round leader after he returned with four-under-par 67 to take a one-shot lead over his closest rivals at the 37th GS Caltex Maekyung Open Golf Championship on Thursday.
Sandhu continued to showcase the strength of Indian golf with a performance that threatens to break the Korean stronghold at the event which has not been won by a foreign player since Mark Calcavecchia of the United States lifted the prestigious trophy in 2004.
The Korean trio of Heungchol Joo, LeeDong Ha and JaeBum Park stayed close to Sandhu when they signed for matching 68s at the Namseoul Country Club which is welcoming back players from the Asian Tour for the first time since 2009.
Spain’s Javi Colomo, Thailand’s Jazz Janewattananond, Australia’s Terry Pilkadaris and India’s Shiv Kapur are a further shot back from the Koreans after they all posted a 69 at the KR?1,000,000,000 (approx. US$925,000) event.
Fresh off a top-10 finish in Japan a fortnight ago, Sandhu believes the recent success of his compatriots has motivated him to do better too.
After firing four birdies in his front-nine, the 29-year-old had to battle the elements when play resumed. He showed character by recovering quickly after dropping shots on 14 and 16 with birdies on 15 and 17 to sit atop the leaderboard on his own.
Asian Tour Release
