July 07, 2016: Jeev Milkha Singh produced a creditable 72 in the first round of the Scottish Open at the Castle Stuart Golf Links. The other two Indian golfers had to endure a painful first day, slipping in 78 each to end the day tied in 128th place. There was a two way tie at the top – Scott Hend and Felipe Aguilar were lying at three under at the end of the first day’s play.
Jeev was well ahead of the leading score at one point during his round before suffering great misery on the return stretch. The 806th ranked Indian showed his experience to race away to four under through eleven holes.
But he suffered a double blow at the 12th and 13th to surrender much of the advantage. Jeev shot a double bogey seven at the 599 yard twelfth hole before losing another shot at the 444 yard par-4 13th hole to slip back to one under.
After making four straight pars, Jeev surrendered another bogey at the final hole to end his day even with the treacherous links course in Inverness.
SSP Chawrasia and Shiv Kapur endured a miserable day on the course as both men sank to a score of six over 78 after starting at opposite ends of the course. Kapur started at the tenth hole, while Chawrasia teed off from the first.
The Kolkata golfer made a good start with a birdie at the very first hole, but the course bared its fangs to extract two bogeys in the next three holes to wipe out the advantage.
Chawrasia battled hard to produce six straight pars, but it was a battle of patience and the course got him again.
He was forced to concede three shots between the 11th and 14th holes – packed with a double bogey, a pair of bogeys and a birdie at the par-5 12th hole.
The final cut came at the 18th hole – Chawrasia shot a double bogey seven at the final hole to push himself to the brink.
Kapur made four bogeys, two double bogeys and a pair of birdies in his round. Like Chawrasia, he too started with a birdie at the 10th, which was Kapur’s first hole. But he conceded four shots in four holes as he made the turn and never quite recovered from there.
