Paired together on Tuesday, the two experienced campaigners reached the top of the leaderboard in contrasting fashion.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Akshay made a flying start with four consecutive birdies from the first through the fourth. A bogey on the par-five fifth briefly halted his momentum, but he responded with four more birdies to complete an impressive opening round.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Manu Gandas, on the other hand, made two birdies and a bogey on the front nine and then had a late flourish with an eagle and four birdies on the back nine. The Hyderabad-based 19-year-old Vishesh Sharma and Delhi\u2019s Rashid Khan shared third place at six-under 66, one shot behind the leaders.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Vishesh produced a bogey-free round featuring six birdies on his return to competition. He had been sidelined by illness for a couple of weeks after missing the cut at the J&K Open three weeks ago.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Rashid put together an eventful 66 featuring an eagle on the par-four third, six birdies and two bogeys. Noida\u2019s Lakshya Nagar also kept a clean card, making five birdies in a bogey-free five-under 67 to occupy fifth place.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Akshay, 36, credited his putting with helping him take advantage of the soft, receptive greens. \u201cI\u2019m feeling great and am very happy with the way I played,\u201d said Akshay. \u201cI struck the ball well, but the biggest difference was my putting. I holed several long putts, which helped me build the round.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Akshay, a three-time winner on the DP World PGTI, is currently third in the season rankings. His most recent victory came at the DP World Players Championship at Classic Golf & Country Club in Gurugram in April.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThe greens are soft and rolling true, so the plan was straightforward,\u201d he said. \u201cI wanted to find the fairways and give myself as many opportunities as possible by hitting the greens in regulation. I\u2019ll follow the same approach tomorrow and give it my best.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Gandas overcame a slow start to join his playing partner at the top. His round featured six birdies, an eagle on the par-five 12th and a lone bogey on the par-four sixth. \u201cI didn\u2019t start particularly well, but I found my rhythm and played a strong second half,\u201d said Gandas. \u201cHopefully, I can carry that momentum through the rest of the week.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The 30-year-old did not hit his best drive on the 12th but recovered with an excellent second shot before converting the eagle putt. \u201cMy drive wasn\u2019t ideal, but I followed it with a good approach and then holed an excellent putt,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Gandas, a nine-time winner on the DP World PGTI and the 2022 Order of Merit champion, is currently 18th in the standings. He plans to retain the same approach over the next three rounds. \u201cI\u2019ll stay committed to what I\u2019m doing and see where it takes me,\u201d he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The 30-year-old did not hit his best drive on the 12th but recovered with an excellent second shot before converting the eagle putt. \u201cMy drive wasn\u2019t ideal, but I followed it with a good approach and then holed an excellent putt,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The opening round was suspended due to fading light, with 27 players out of a total of 132 still on the course. Play will resume on Wednesday at 6:45 am local time, when the remaining players will complete their rounds.<\/p>\r\n\r\n