Vani Kapoor grabs early lead at Jaipur

The second position is held by Ankita Tiwana who carded one-over 72.

Jaipur: Delhi youngster Vani Kapoor carded one-under 70, the best score of the day, to grab the lead after the opening round of season's final leg of Hero Women's Professional Golf Tour at Rambagh Golf Club here.

Trailing her in the second position by a margin of two strokes is Ankita Tiwana, who carded one-over 72. The Rs 5,00,000 event will culminate on 27th November 2015.

Hero Order of Merit leader Vani started on a aggressive note, carding three birdies on the 1st, 5th and 8th holes, while dropping two shots on the 3rd and 7th holes in her front nine. She began her back nine with a bogey on the 10th hole that erased her advantage but two more birdies on the 15th and 17th holes helped her to regain the initiative.

She could have ended with a better score but for a bogey on the 18th. Her tally of five birdies was the maximum by any player on the day.

Delhi's Ankita, won her maiden title in Srinagar last year, played cautiously in her front nine, dropping just two shots on the 3rd and 4th holes while carding a birdie on the 5th. She made no further mistakes during the course of the day and played an even par back nine.

Pune's Shweta Galande carded three-over 74 to take the third position. She began with bogeys on the 3rd, 5th and 7th holes, but two consecutive birdies on the 8th and 9th holes helped her to repair the damage. She could not keep the momentum going in her back nine, dropping shots on the 10th, 13th and 14th holes as against a lone birdie on the 15th.

Kolkata's Smriti Mehra, Jaipur's Afshan Fatima and Panchkula's Amandeep Drall returned with identical scores of four-over 75, to be placed tied fourth.

Kapurthala's Gursimar Badwal and Overseas player Kiran Matharu ended with identical scores of six-over 77 to finish tied seventh followed by Kolkata's Neha Tripathi and Delhi's Ayesha Kapur in tied ninth position with nine-over 80.