A Very Wide Open Championship!
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NBA | Page 5 LeBron passes Jordan for fourth on all-time points list Friday, March 8, 2019 FOOTBALL Rajab 1, 1440 AH Solskjaer makes GULF TIMES Man Utd comeback kings again SPORT Page 2 COMMERCIAL BANK QATAR MASTERS Arnaus has ‘fun’ as he takes share of lead with Walters ‘I gave myself good birdie chances and I was able to take advantage of some of them, so I’m pleased’ By Yash Mudgal Doha pain’s Adri Arnaus had “a lot of fun” in windy conditions as he carded a fi rst-round 67 that gave Shim a share of the lead at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters yesterday. Arnaus, in his fi rst full season on the European Tour after grad- uating from the Challenge Tour, set the clubhouse target of fi ve- under after he opened his round with a birdie on the tenth hole at the Doha Golf Club and then reached the turn four-under with a birdie on the 16th and an eagle on the 18th. “It was a lot of fun,” said Ar- naus, who fi nished second on the Challenge Tour Rankings to graduate to the European Tour. “The wind picked up early but I kept the ball in play most of the time, I gave myself good birdie chances and I was able to take ad- vantage of some of them, so I’m pleased,” the 2017 Spanish Ama- teur champion said. Arnaus has made a better start to 2019. He’s made fi ve of seven cuts, with a best place fi nish of tied ninth in the Alfred Dunhill Championship. He’s 51st on the European Tour money list. “It was good getting into con- tention last year, and then at the end being able to close it out at the Challenge Tour Grand Final gave me the belief that I could go on and do it on a bigger stage. Tomorrow is a new day, so I’ll just need to continue doing the same South Africa’s Justin Walters (left) and Spain’s Adri Arnaus (right) in action on the first day of the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters at Doha Golf Club yesterday. things.” South Africa’s Justin Walters, who is sharing the lead with Bhullar cards 69 in quest for second European title Arnaus, was “ecstatic” after his fi ve-under on a windswept By Yash Mudgal Five years ago, Bhullar was una- eight titles on the continental opening day. Doha ble to reproduce the same form, circuit. Walters, who is waiting for his battling his way to aggregate a Talking about his first round fi rst European Tour win since nine-under for tied 22nd place, scores, he said: “It is a decent turning pro in 2003, defi ed the aganjeet Bhullar was while Spanish star Sergio Garcia score, I would say. I feel it is a testing conditions to fi re fi ve within striking distance claimed the title with 16-under. good start to the tournament. birdies in a fl awless round on Gfor his second European “It was a good opening day. I The course played in good shape the Peter Harradine-designed Tour title, carding a three-under started off well from the 10th – fairways, greens and bunkers. course. in the opening round for the and I was minus five in the The greens are firm but a little “Warming up today in the $1.75mn Commercial Bank Qatar first 10 holes. Then I was a bit bit dry and you have to hit the wind I thought any score under Masters yesterday. unlucky and had a double bogey, ball a little high to stop it,” he par would be great, so to shoot The 30-year-old held his own losing an odd ball. That was the said. fi ve-under I’m ecstatic,” Walters and shot a 69 in difficult condi- only blemish I had today and off “The conditions were tough. said. tions to stay tied 10th with 18 the remaining holes I parred to Right from the morning, it was Walters hasn’t started the 2019 others after a windswept first finish with three-under,” Bhullar windy. It wasn’t calm. We guys campaign with the sort of form round. told Gulf Times. teed off at 7:45 and the wind he showed in the opening round Starting on back nine yesterday, Bhullar is the most successful picked up and turned into gusts in Qatar. Despite making four Bhullar looked like he was going Indian golfer on the Asian Tour around 8:30 or 9. It is supposed of seven cuts, he is 90th on the to emulate his opening day 67 after winning the co-sanctioned to be like this for the rest of the money list and his best fi nish was from his 2014 Qatar debut, when Fiji International last year. The day.” Robert Karlsson of Sweden carded three-under. PICTURE: Jayaram a tied 34th in Oman. he went five-under after the 30-year-old broke the tie with The other Indian in the fray, SSP “I putted really well and my first 10 holes. However, a double Jyoti Randhawa, Jeev Milkha Chowrasia, finished the round Broberg (Swe), R Gouveia (Por), A son (Sco), J Hansen (Den), A Björk short game was really good today. bogey on the 11th set him back. Singh and Arjun Atwal, who have tied 82nd with one-over. Cañizares (Esp), H Tanihara (Jpn), (Swe), K Koivu (Fin), M Schmitt I haven’t played that well, even in T Aiken (RSA) (Ger), O Fisher (Eng), G Fdez- calmer conditions, in a while so winner Kurt Kitayama, India’s a birdie on his tenth, and so too I’ve got them. I like this golf Rooyen (RSA) , I Cantero Gutier- 72: M Warren (Sco), D Drysdale Castaño (Esp), P Figueiredo (Por), it’s surprising and very welcome. Gaganjeet Bhullar, former cham- did Welshman Bradley Dredge, course. It suits my eye. I enjoy rez (Esp) , P Waring (Eng) , R (Sco), M Schwab (Aut), J Choi J Van Zyl (RSA), C Saxon (USA), I wouldn’t want to play another pion Robert Karlsson and Ryder after he carded three birdies in playing it and I see the shots I’m Karlsson (Swe), S Fernandez (Kor), J Dantorp (Swe), A Karls- H Park (Kor), H Porteous (RSA), S three days with a wind like this, Cup players Ross Fisher, Oliver succession around the turn. playing more than I do on a lot (Esp), G Forrest (Sco), E Molinari son (Swe), T Pulkkanen (Fin), D Brown (Eng), V Dubuisson (Fra) especially after a relentless spell Wilson and Edoardo Molinari. However, they both dropped of other tracks. Everything feels (Ita), M Kawamura (Jpn), N Cullen Howell (Eng), D Lipsky (USA), M 74: J Lagergren (Swe), C Paisley of wind in Oman last week,” he Australia’s Lucas Herbert was shots later, falling into a group pretty solid.” (Aus), K Kitayama (USA), M Kieff er Southgate (Eng), T Bjørn (Den), (Eng), F Bergamaschi (Ita), S Locke said. also in that group but darkness of seven players on four-under, Two-time champion and (Ger), Y Miyazato (Jpn), R Fisher B Wiesberger (Aut), M Kinhult (Sco), P Langfors (Swe), B Hebert “Hopefully, as the conditions brought an end to the day’s play, which included former Ryder former Open champion Paul (Eng), G Bhullar (Ind), R Macintyre (Swe), R Rock (Eng), J Camp- (Fra), R Wattel (Fra), A Rai (Eng), P improve over the next few days I while his group was playing their Cup player Nicolas Colsaerts and Lawrie had a poor start as he fi n- (Sco), O Wilson (Eng) illo (Esp), R Jacquelin (Fra), F Larrazábal (Esp), M Waite (Eng) can continue to play the way I’ve fi nal hole. The trio will return to Coetzee. ished the day at eight-over. 70: D Lawson (Aus), A Chesters Zanotti (Par), S Soderberg (Swe), 75: S Crocker (USA), D Burmester played today.” fi nish early today. Pre-tourna- “I played pretty well,” said (Eng), T Pieters (Bel), S Kjeldsen J McLeod (Aus), L Johnston (Sco), (RSA), M Lee (Aus), N Lemke South Africans George Co- ment favourite Thomas Pieters Coetzee, who fi nished second to LEADING FIRST ROUND SCORES (Den), A Sullivan (Eng), B Evans A Saddier (Fra), S Brazel (Aus), C (Swe), C Wood (Eng), R McEvoy etzee, a former runner-up in of Belgium is a shot further back Chris Wood in 2013. 67: A Arnaus (Esp), J Walters (Eng), J Winther (Den), T Detry Sordet (Fra), A Meronk (Pol), D (Eng), W Nienaber (RSA) Doha, and Justin Harding are alongside his World Cup-win- “I was slow out of the blocks, (RSA) (Bel), N Johansson (Swe) Gavins (Eng), Z Lombard (RSA), C 76: K Reitan (Nor), N Bertasio among seven golfers, who share ning partner Thomas Detry. but I hit the ball pretty good and 68: B Dredge (Wal), H Leon (Chi), 71: A Otaegui (Esp), B Stone (RSA), Bezuidenhout (RSA), M Korhonen (Ita), S Hend (Aus), P Hanson third place at four-under. Scotland’s Richie Ramsay be- putted pretty well. It’s tricky J Harding (RSA), N Colsaerts (Bel), T Jaidee (Tha), J Smith (Eng), J (Fin), S Gregory (Eng) (Swe), K Johannessen (Nor), As many as 19 golfers are tied gan on the back nine, shooting an with the wind and the dust. It’s G Coetzee (RSA), R Ramsay (Sco), Kruyswijk (RSA), N Elvira (Esp), 73: J Singh Brar (Eng), S Chawra- A Pavan (Ita), J Wang (Kor), D one stroke further down, in- eagle on par-fi ve tenth.