Vijay Kumar leads with 65 after Rd 1 in Haryana Open

Panchkula : Vijay Kumar of Lucknow fired a blistering seven-under 65 to grab the lead after the opening round of the Haryana Open here on Wednesday.

Balwinder Singh Mattu of Jalandhar and Sri Lanka`s Anura Rohana are tied second at six-under 66 at Panchkula Golf Club here. Ashok Kumar, Mandeo Singh Pathania, Amardip Sinh Malik, Md Zamal Hossain Mollah, Raju Ali Mollah and Abhishek Jha are all in tied fourth at five-under 67. C Muniyappa lies tied 13th at three-under 69 while Mukesh Kumar is tied 15th at two-under 70. A 10th tee starter, Vijay Kumar looked in ominous form when he birdied the first hole with a 15-feet putt. He drove the green on the next hole to add another birdie to his card. He picked up three more strokes on the 14th, 15th and the first. The bogey on the second could not slow down the 42-year-old`s progress as he came back with birdies on the fourth, fifth and ninth holes. "I have been driving it well over the last few weeks and it was just about getting my iron-play going. I managed to achieve that on Wednesday I made as many as three birdie putts from a range of 15 feet and more and also converted a few chip-putts for birdie," said Vijay. "The greens are playing really well and driving and putting will hold the key this week. I`ve shot some very low numbers at this course in the past, including an eight under 64, so I`m confident about performing well at this venue," he added. Balwinder Singh Mattu made nine birdies against three bogeys in his round of six under 66. Anura Rohana of Sri Lanka, who shares second position along with Balwinder Singh Mattu, made an eagle, five birdies and a bogey. PTI