Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri stumbled to a couple of late bogeys to return a disappointing three-over 75 on the opening day of the Open Championships here today.
Among the early starters, going off at 7.09 am, Lahiri's game looked wayward and he missed a good number of fairways especially on the back nine and dropped four bogeys and a double against just three birdies.
Looking and sounding disappointed Lahiri admitted, "It was ideal conditions and I have no excuses. I played pretty poorly especially on holes where there were lots of opportunities. The last four holes are easier holes and coming in, I think I got a bit frustrated that I didn't make anything happen. It's a great learning experience."
His 'A' game was nowhere in the vicinity and he struggled at various stages, with both his driving and even the putting deserting him.
"I struggled. Honestly, I was no where near where I should be with my game. It would have been nice if I could make a few more putts from inside 10 or 15 feet. It just didn't fall for me today," said the 27-year-old.
But he did hold out hope and added, "I have to play my best golf tomorrow. I know that. I missed a lot of shots to the right and didn't find enough fairways. The frustration got the better of me coming in and I've got to be careful with that.
"I've got to come out tomorrow with more confidence and more positivity. It was quite disappointing as the conditions were good. I just hit a few destructive shots and didn't find enough fairways. Not what I was looking for obviously."
He is trying to feed off the positive memories of his appearance at Royal Lytham and St. Annes two years ago, where he finished tied 31st and also had a hole-in-one.
