Walton Heath (UK), Aug 11 (PTI) India’s Aditi Ashok shot an even-par 72 to be placed tied 33rd while compatriot Diksha Dagar carded 74 to find herself in tied 81st spot after the opening round of the Women’s Open golf tournament here.
Aditi shot even par 72 in the first round and was well inside the cut line, but Diksha carded 74 and was two-over with the cut likely at one-over on a sun-soaked day.
It was tight at the top of the leaderboard as the players got to grips with the testing course at the final Major of the year.
Aditi will look to play a steady round to make the weekend action, while Diksha will need an under par second round to make the cut, which will fall at the end of two rounds.
While Aditi is seeking to better her best finish in a Major, which is T-22 in 2018 Women’s Open, Diksha is looking at making her first cut in her second attempt at the tournament, which is the last of the five Majors for women.
Ally Ewing of the US fired an opening round of 68 (-4) to lead by one stroke at the end of the first day after overtaking five players, who shot 69 each.
When early action began on the second day, Ewing was six-under through 13 holes and had moved to 10-under and six shots ahead of Lilia Vu of the US, who after 72 on the first day was four-under for 16 holes and was in second place.
It was three-time LPGA Tour winner Ewing who posted the round of the day making three bogeys, five birdies and an eagle to be on four-under-par.
One behind Ewing, five players were in a share of second place on three-under-par after round one at Walton Heath, including 2020 Race to Costa del Sol champion Emily Kristine Pedersen.
The Danish star dropped a shot on the second hole but made an eagle on the 10th before adding birdies on 12 and 16 for her round of 69 (-3).
Pedersen sits in T-2 alongside Korean duo Jeongeun Lee and Amy Yang, France’s Perrine Delacour and Thailand’s Jaravee Boonchant.
One shot further back, there is a group of 12 players who are all in tie for seventh place on two-under-par including Spain’s Carlota Ciganda and Switzerland’s Morgane Metraux.
After the second round there will be a cut to top-65 and ties at the end of the day.
Source: PTI News
