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Fung shares lead with Kang in first round
Rolling a challenge: Lam Zhiqun of Singapore rolls the ball on the last green on the opening day of the CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters at Royale Jakarta Golf Club, East Jakarta, on Thursday
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Rolling a challenge: Lam Zhiqun of Singapore rolls the ball on the last green on the opening day of the CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters at Royale Jakarta Golf Club, East Jakarta, on Thursday. (JP/P.J. Leo) (JP/P.J. Leo)
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span class="inline inline-none">Rolling a challenge: Lam Zhiqun of Singapore rolls the ball on the last green on the opening day of the CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters at Royale Jakarta Golf Club, East Jakarta, on Thursday. (JP/P.J. Leo)
Malaysian number one Nicholas Fung had an impressive performance in the first round of the CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters, taking a shared lead with Korean-American Anthony Kang with an opening five-under-par 67 at the Royale Jakarta Golf Club on Thursday.
Three-time Asian Tour winner Chapchai Nirat from Thailand scored a 68 to share third place with Australian rookie Cameron Smith.
'I started very well today. I was three-under after five holes. All good for me out there today,' said Fung, who participated in the EuroAsia Cup, where Team Asia battled to an epic draw with Team Europe last month.
'It's nice to see my name on the leaderboard out there and on the first day of the tournament. I made the cut in Malaysia last week for the first time and that gave me a confidence boost as well. Of course my experience at the EuroAsia Cup taught me a lot. I've learned to be patient with my game, try to calm down and always stay positive,' he said.
The Malaysian emerged as the top player among the morning's marquee players, which included 2013 Asian Tour Order of Merit winner Kiradech Aphibarnrat of Thailand and Major winner Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa.
Kang, who last won the region's premier Tour in 2009, when he snatched his third title in Malaysia, was surprised by his performance that placed him atop the leaderboard.
'I surprised myself with such a good score. You know, I'm getting old and I'm just enjoying my time on the golf course. But today's score shows that I still have the talent to play good golf,' said 41-year-old Kang.
Nirat, who missed the cut in his last two events in the Philippines and Malaysia, got back into the mix by firing six birdies against two bogeys to stay within sight of the leaders.
'I changed by putter recently and the results have paid off today. I haven't been putting that well recently and I thought it's time for a change. It showed today as I managed to hole several long putts and that has brought back lots of confidence,' said Nirat.
Local player George Gandranata scored one under 71, placing him in the 31st position alongside Aphibarnrat and Thaworn Wiratchant.
However he did not want to be too excited about the result just yet.
'This is just the first day. I just need to play slowly and hopefully I can maintain my performance [in the remaining days],' he said.
Amateur player Fadhli Rahman Soetarso also showed impressive play by scoring par 72 to share the 44th position with Oosthuizen and Thai Thongchai Jaidee.
