Daijiworld Media Network – Paris

Paris, Sep 19: Indian golfer Veer Ahlawat made a modest start at the FedEx Open de France, carding an even-par 71 to finish tied 71st after the opening round at Golf de Saint-Nom-La-Bretèche. His compatriot Shubhankar Sharma, however, endured a difficult day, returning with a 2-over 74, placing him tied 127th on the leaderboard.

Ahlawat began with a bogey on the first but quickly recovered with a birdie on the third. He traded another bogey-birdie on the eighth and ninth, before finishing the back nine with a bogey on the 15th and a birdie on the 16th, ending the round with three birdies and three bogeys.

Sharma, starting on the 10th, had a roller-coaster round. After birdies on the 12th and 17th, a double bogey on the 18th pulled him back. His front nine also saw bogeys on the second, fifth, and seventh, alongside birdies on the sixth and eighth, leaving him at 74 for the day.

At the top, England’s Marcus Armitage produced a sensational stretch with eight birdies in 10 holes between the sixth and 15th. Despite a late bogey on the 17th, he claimed the first-round lead by two strokes. Min Woo Lee and Julien Guerrier followed in second place after identical 5-under 66s.