Vani Kapoor leads Day 1 with Zara Anand right behind her

DLF Golf and Country Club opened the gates for Women’s Indian Open on Thursday (October 9) as it marked the first day of the competition.

The course which received unexpected rains in the build up to the competition was up for a test – how much it will recover from the heavy rains earlier in the week and how it will play.

The weather relented in the approaching days of the competition which was a big sigh of relief for the organisers.

The sun was out on Thursday which made the day pleasant and the course even more beautiful. All the doubts were erased as the day started and the course played well. The green was softer thanks to the rain – though the sunshine baked it a bit -- and it turned out to be an exciting challenge for the professionals.

Indian golfers had a relatively mixed day where Diksha Dagar, among India’s best, languished at 82nd spot with a score of 6-over 78. It was not a performance living up to the hopes that were pinned to her.

But Vani Kapoor (in top pic) and Zara Anand made the Indian Open’s first day their own with powerful performances which saw them leading all the way.

Vani had finished early in the day and her score was 5 under par and it did not look like her lead was in any significant danger except from Verena Gimmy of Germany who was 4 under par before the 16th hole and looked like she might add another under par score in the remaining holes. However, she could manage only par scores.

Zara Anand was placed tied second with four-under

Zara Anand, Shannon Tan and Verena Gimmy share the 2nd spot at 4 under par.

Mimi Rhodes, in the limelight and one of the favourites had a day she would like to forget fast and focus on Friday and the days to follow. She was tied 55th with a score of 4-over 76.

The competition and the challenge will grow intense as there may be major changes to the table tomorrow as players will turn up to better their performances.

Vani, the leader, 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.

Zara Anand, who is just 17, was thrilled with her performance. After missing the cut last year, she made a rough start struggling to 3-over through the first eight holes after starting from the 10th.

She picked her first birdie on the 18th, and from there she was on fire.

“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 impressive front 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.”

Tags : Vani Kapoor, Zara Anand, Indian Open, Women's Golf, DLF, Mimi Rhodes, Diksha Dagar