Pranavi, who has shown consistent form in recent months, once again demonstrated her growing maturity on the Ladies European Tour. Starting from the back nine, she settled in quickly with an early birdie on the 11th hole and then played steady golf with seven successive pars to make the turn at 1-under.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Her momentum gathered pace on the front nine as she reeled off three consecutive birdies on the first, second, and third holes to briefly challenge for the lead. A bogey on the fourth halted the charge, but Pranavi responded calmly with pars on each of the remaining five holes to close a fine opening round and earn a share of second place alongside nine other players.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The Indian golfer has been knocking on the door of a breakthrough title. Last season, she finished inside the top 10 at the Hero Women\u2019s Indian Open, and she also made headlines by winning the IGPL Invitational Mumbai in a mixed professional field, becoming the first Indian woman professional to achieve that feat against male professionals.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Leader Bennett mixed seven birdies with two bogeys during an impressive round. The Australian picked up shots on the first, second, seventh, eighth, 12th, 13th, and 16th holes, with her only blemishes coming on the 14th and 15th.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Among the other Indians in the field, Avani Prashanth and Diksha Dagar endured difficult starts as both returned rounds of 2-over 75 to be tied 61st. Hitaashee Bakshi carded a 5-over 78 and was placed tied 99th.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Avani\u2019s round was highlighted by a costly quadruple bogey on the second hole of her front nine, though she fought back with birdies on the same hole and the eighth later in the round. Diksha\u2019s lone birdie came on the second hole, but consecutive bogeys on the fifth and sixth prevented her from finishing under par.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Among the other Indians in the field, Avani Prashanth and Diksha Dagar endured difficult starts as both returned rounds of 2-over 75 to be tied 61st. Hitaashee Bakshi carded a 5-over 78 and was placed tied 99th.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Japan\u2019s Ayako Uehara, Singapore\u2019s Shannon Tan, and England\u2019s Hannah Screen were the only players among the top contenders to remain bogey-free during the opening round, as all three joined Pranavi in the group tied for second.<\/p>\r\n\r\n