Poom Saksansin of Thailand fired a seven-under-par 64 for his lowest score on the Asian Tour to grab the opening round lead at the TAKE Solutions Masters on Thursday.

The baby-faced Poom returned with seven birdies to lead by two shots from Indian teenager Viraj Madappa and Divyanshu Bajaj at the Karnataka Golf Association (KGA) Golf Course.

Spaniard Carlos Pigem, Syed Saqib Ahmed and Sujjan Singh of India were a further two shots back following matching 67s while Chikkarangappa S, who won the event twice on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) returned with a 68.

S.S.P. Chawrasia of India, who needs at least a second place result this week to take over the Asian Tour Order of Merit lead, posted a 69 to share 12th place.

Poom, who won his first Asian Tour title at the Indonesian Masters last year, chipped-in for birdie on his last hole from the edge of the green to soar into the lead and hand him his best round on the Asian Tour.

The Thai has been struggling to recover from a back injury which he sustained late last year but he is slowly finding his form again.

The 19-year-old Madappa, a former number one Indian amateur golfer, got off to a hot start in his first Asian Tour tournament as a professional. He joined the play-for-pay ranks earlier this year. 

Did you know? 

  • Poom Saksansin got off to a birdie, birdie start. He ended his back nine on a high note with five birdies for a 29.
  • He missed only two fairways and made 25 putts. A chip in birdie on the last hole from the edge of the green helped with his putting stats.
  • The top three players – Poom, Viraj Madappa and Divyanshu Bajaj of India ended the first day without any bogeys.
  • Poom almost dropped a shot on the eighth hole after reading a wrong page on his yardage book. He hit it over the green by about 15 yards but managed to save par. He only realised his mistake after asking Siddikur about the hole yardage.
  • Poom injured his back in October last year and only returned to competitive golf in January where he shot an opening 10-over 81 in Myanmar. He is slowly finding his form again.
  • Viraj Madappa, 19, is playing in his Asian Tour tournament as a professional. He enjoyed a highly successful amateur career where he rose to 45th on the amateur golf rankings.
  • Madappa eagled the par-five 11th hole after hitting his seven-iron (191 yards) to 15 feet of the hole which he sank.
  • Madappa said he learned how to play golf after going for swimming lessons. “I was a fat kid and I went swimming at a golf club. There I saw people playing golf and I told my father that I wanted to try it.”
  • Bajaj Divyanshu of India has not made a single cut in eight Asian Tour events which dates back to 2012. His flawless round of 66 puts him in good position to make the weekend rounds.

Player Quotes: 

Poom Saksansin (Tha) – First Round 64 (-7) 

Overall it was a good round. My driver and irons were good but I missed some putts. I hit it quite close today but missed the putts which is quite disappointing.

I only made one mistake and it was very silly. On the par-three hole 8, I read the wrong page of my yardage book. I hit it over the green by 12 or 15 yards and I was surprised. I asked Siddikur why the yardage was different and after he told me, I realised I was reading the wrong page. It was very stupid of me but lucky I save par.

On the last hole, I made a very nice chip-in birdie. That was very nice.

I hurt my back after Macao last year and didn’t play until Myanmar where I shot a 10-over-par on the first day. I felt like I didn’t know how to putt but my game is slowly coming back. I’m happy.

Viraj Madappa (Ind) – First Round 66 (-5) 

This is my second Asian Tour event. I played in my first at the Diamond Cup in Japan as an amateur two years ago. I was really excited to start the day. I woke up fresh and raring to go.

It is easier to build on a good start and that’s what I did. It gives you a lot of confidence knowing that you can play well. I feel like I could have gone a little bit lower. I can’t wait for the next three days to go.

I have played here a number of times because I studied in Bengaluru so for two years I’ve almost based out of this golf course.

This is my first year as a professional and every day I feel more comfortable and confident. Every day is a learning experience. I feel that I could have gone lower. I didn’t hit it really close so I’m going to put in some work on the range.

Eagle on hole 11: Good drive to the middle of the fairway, seven iron 191 yards to the green, putt 15 feet (right to left uphill putt).

Divyanshu Bajaj (Ind) – First Round 66 (-5)

I struck it well and landed it within seven feet on quite a few holes. I backed that up with some quality putting.

I think I was a little fortunate to make eagle on the par-5 11th where the wind was in my favour and the pin was accessible.

I’ve endured two tough seasons on the PGTI in 2015 and 2016 but this year I’ve been working on the mental side of my game and the results have got better. I have two top-10s on the PGTI this season and am placed 19th in the Order of Merit at this stage.

But this is definitely my best round of the season so far.

My good friend Rahil Gangjee, who recently moved from Kolkata to Bengaluru and now plays at KGA, shared some valuable tips with me with regard to the greens during the practice round. His inputs have helped me a great deal.

Rahil along with S.S.P. (Chawrasia) are the two people I often talk to for feedback on my game. They have both been very helpful over the years and have always encouraged me.

Chikkaranggapa S. (Ind) – First Round 68 (-3)

I started on the 10th hole but was a bit rusty. I was two-over after a couple of holes. I told myself to hang in there. I wasn’t swing it that great but I managed to make a great birdie on the 18th hole. That gave me some boost.

The course conditions are nice but it is playing more difficult than what we are used to. The conditions are tough out there because it was quite windy.

 

Scores after round 1 of the Take Solutions Masters being played at the par 71, 7060 Yards Karnata Golf Association course (am – denotes amateur):

 

64 – Poom SAKSANSIN (THA).

66 – Viraj MADAPPA (IND), Divyanshu BAJAJ (IND).

67 – Syed Saqib AHMED (IND), Carlos PIGEM (ESP), Sujjan SINGH (IND).

68 – Scott BARR (AUS), Chikkarangappa S. (IND), Todd SINNOTT (AUS), Khalin JOSHI (IND), Om Prakash CHOUHAN (IND).

69 – C. MUNIYAPPA (IND), Deepinder Singh KULLAR (IND), Rory HIE (INA), Sattaya SUPUPRAMAI (THA), Gaganjeet BHULLAR (IND), S.S.P. CHAWRASIA (IND), Udayan MANE (IND), Jyoti RANDHAWA (IND), Gaurav Pratap SINGH (IND), Ajeetesh SANDHU (IND), Daniel ZULUAGA (COL), Casey O’TOOLE (USA), Jaibir SINGH (IND), Aman RAJ (IND).

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