Gurugram, October 9: Vani Kapoor, who has never missed a cut in her previous 12 appearances at the Hero Women’s Indian Open, got off to her best start in the National Open, as she put together a superb 5-under 67 that gave her a one-shot lead over the rest of the field after the first round.

With as many as four Indians in the Top-1o, it was a happy hunting day for the home contingent.

Showing great familiarity at the DLF Golf and Country Club, her home course, Vani had six birdies against one bogey through her round. Her gains included a hat-trick of birdies on the back nine from the 11^th to the 13^th as she kept her nerves intact in the closing stages. Vani’s best finish at the event has been her Tied-sixth finish, back in 2017.

Three players, including the prodigious amateur, Zara Anand, who joins college golf in the United States next year, were tied for second with rounds of 4-under 68 each. Zara staged a magnificent fightback after being 3-over through eight holes having starting from the tenth. She picked seven birdies in the last 10 holes, including six on the front nine of the course for a stunning 6-under 30.

The second-placed trio included last year’s joint runner-up Shannon Tan of Singapore and Germany’s Verena Gimmy, who after being tied for the lead, dropped a late bogey to fall in a tie for second.

Shannon also had a fine second nine after being even par for the back nine of the course, which was her first nine. She had four birdies on the front nine of the course.

Zara Anand.

While Vani shot 5-under, the course was still very challenging, as only 16 players went under par and another nine carded even par.

From an Indian point of view, apart from Vani and Zara, Durga Nittur and Hitaashee Bakshi shot 2-under 70 and were Tied-sixth.

Pranavi Urs (72) was T-17, Avani Prashanth (73) was T-26, while Tvesa Malik, Amandeep Drall and Heena Kang with 74 each were T-35^th.

The top Indian on the LET rankings, Diksha Dagar had a rough day with a card of 6-over 78 and is in danger of missing the cut at T-82.

Gaurika Bishnoi, who had her husband, acclaimed golfer and World No. 29 – Aaron Rai, on the bag, shot 77 and was T-69.

Calling the golf course her friend, Vani Kapoor said, “I think the key here is just to keep the ball in play. Easier said than done. But guess the person who does that and who holes putts is going to be the winner at the end.”

She added, “DLF was my friend today, so I hope it continues to be my friend. No mistakes as such, I just had one bogey on the second hole. I just hit a wrong club, went a little too aggressive, probably should not have. I took my lesson from there and then I was like, let’s just play within limits. Let’s not try to do a lot of things.”

“After today’s round, I definitely feel more confident, I would say. But actually, to go out there and put in the work and do my job. It’s good to get some good numbers and ensure that I am on the right track and I’m working on the right things.

“I just want to repeat what I did today, one shot at a time. Enjoy this week. Try and not to get overwhelmed, that’s about it”, she added.

Young Zara Anand was thrilled with her round. After missing the cut last year, she seemed headed for a rough start as she was 3-over through the first eight holes after starting from the tenth.

She picked her first birdie on the 18^th, and from there she was on fire. She had six birdies and no bogeys on the front side of the course.

“It’s been pretty good. I’m really grateful for the opportunities that I’ve been given and just hoping to continue it. I played the WGAI (Domestic Tour event) here, two weeks ago. Unfortunately, I lost out in the playoff, but it was a good way to get familiar with the course.”

On her superb second nine, she said, “I had the momentum in the second nine and I holed some long putts and some short putts, too. So, I’m very happy with how it’s going and looking forward to continue it tomorrow.”

Alice Hewson, who was lying fifth with 69, said, “I quite enjoy coming back here. The course is still playing really challenging this year. I think a lot of people felt that because it’s not quite as firm as it has been and it’s not quite as fast, it would be a little bit easier, but that’s definitely not the case. The rough is really thick out there, you have to hit fairways, you have to hit greens, otherwise it’s basically a shot penalty every single time you’re in it.

“So I think I did a really good job this afternoon on the back nine, especially giving myself some opportunities and taking advantage of them.”