Ras Al Khaimah (UAE), Feb 2 (PTI) India’s Manu Gandas got off to a sedate start with a three-over 75 that left him in a difficult position to make the cut at the Ras Al Khaimah golf championship on the DP World Tour here.
Manu, who earned the DP World Tour membership by virtue of being the top player on the PGTI Tour, is making his first appearance on the Tour this week.
The 26-year-old birdied the Par-5 third but dropped shots on sixth and seventh and lost further shots on 10th, 12th, and 14th.
In between he had a birdie on 13th at the Al Hamra Golf Club.
Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune got off to an amazing start with six birdies in a row and then added one more to turn in seven-under.
On the back, he again birdied 10th and 15th and his only dropped shot came on the Par-5 18th, where he went into the rough on the left and then missed a 12-foot par putt.
Hisatsune, just 21, has had excellent results on the local Japan Tour and their Challenge Tour. He has also played on the DP World Tour and in Asia earlier.
Three players Matthew Baldwin, Edoardo Molinari, the vice-captain for the European Ryder Cup team this year, and Rasmus Hojgaard, brother of defending champion Nicolai Hojgaard, were tied second with rounds of six-under 66 each.
Five players, led by Ryan Fox, were at five-under 67 each in tied fifth place.
The others were Kazuki Higa of Japan, Dane Oliver Hundeboll, England’s Callum Shinkwin and Swede Alexander Bjork.
Source: PTI News
