Gaganjeet Bhullar continued his comeback mission right into the final event of the year, with a five-under 67 that placed him tied second at the end of the first round of the weather-shortened Philippine Open golf tournament, here today.
Bhullar, who is 48th on the Order of Merit, but has not won since the 2013 Indonesia Open, the last of his five Asian Tour wins, started on the 10th and had six birdies against one bogey.
Two other Indians, Shubhankar Sharma (69) and Khalin Joshi (70), still looking for their first win in their fledgling career were tied 11th and joint 18th. Himmat Rai was tied 38th carding 72, while S Chikkarangappa, two-time winner on Asian Development Tour shot 74.
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Bhullar did not have a single shot during the last two days and played without a practice round.
"I didn't play a practice round. I just walked a few holes and that's about it. I didn't do anything on Wednesday and Thursday and was really eager to get out there and hit some good shots which I did," Bhullar said.
"I played well. Around the turn it was slightly difficult when it got breezy. I hit a lot of greens in regulation and putted well. I only had one three putt on the back nine. I feel good because the golf course suits my style," he added.
Ahead of Bhullar was Lindsay Renolds of Canada who produced a flawless six-under-par 66 to snatch the first round lead.
The Phuket-based Canadian, starting the week in 95th place on the Money List, fired six birdies at the US$300,000 Asian Tour event, presented by ICTSI, to revive his hopes of securing an Asian Tour card for the new 2016 season. He needs to win to keep his Asian Tour card.
He is trailed closely by home favourite Miguel Tabuena, Chinnarat Phadungsil of Thailand, Bhullar and Korean rising star Jeunghun Wang, who posted matching 67s at the Luisita Golf and Country Club.
Speaking of his last year, he added, "It was a ligament tear, grade two back in October 2014. I had to sit out for three to four months as my hand, left wrist, was in a cast. I started playing in the beginning of 2015 but it took me a while to get adjusted to the short game as that's the area where you need your wrist the most. It took me a while to gain my confidence back."
"The last one year was pretty much a healing period of my injury. I started feeling healthy again as I worked on my fitness in the offseason. It's good to be in the red numbers and always good to talk to the media."
"I'm feeling quite positive with my short game now and it's really good to be back in the tournament scene. I need a few more rounds in the red numbers and get my confidence back. Working really hard on my game right now."
The 24-year-old Holman needed only 27 putts, including nine one-putts, at Royal Selangor Golf Club in the event jointly sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.
The colourful Que, nicknamed 'Human Highlighter' for his bright sense of dressing, also sank seven birdies but a lone bogey on the 16th hole saw him end the day alongside Jorge Campillo of Spain, Frenchman Alexander Levy, American Peter Uihlein and English duo Tommy Fleetwood and Danny Willett, who is world number 13.
Thailand's Prom Meesawat, Thongchai Jaidee, Korean duo K T Kim and Soomin Lee and Filipino Miguel Tabuena, who nearly withdrew due to food poisoning, were amongst those lying a further shot back with 66s.
