Muscat: Fernand Osther carded a six-under 66 to take the lead after round one of the Ghala Open — the penultimate round of the Mena Golf Tour’s 16-stage season — on Monday.
The 28-year-old Dutchman hit five birdies, one eagle and a bogey to surge two shots clear of Chilean amateur Matias Calderon and South Africa’s Luke Trocado.
Joe Heraty, the winner of last week’s Sahara Kuwait Championship, led the chasing pack a further shot adrift in a four-man group which included his fellow Englishmen Andrew Marshall, Adam Ward and Switzerland’s Jean-Luc Burnier.
The Moroccan trio of Ahmad Marjan, Younus Al Hassani and Mustapha El Maouas also made their presence felt, sharing eighth on two-under with eight others as 28 players broke par on the opening day.
“Any time you shoot in red numbers you can’t complain,” said Osther. “I started off strongly, making three birdies in a row from the second and that kind of set the tone for the round.
“I did hit a couple awkward drives, but managed to save pars. I am feeling good about my game which is great.”
Saudi Arabia’s Khalid Attieh carded level-par 72 to lead the Mena Division for amateurs, a good four shots ahead of his fellow countryman Ali Al Sakha as Oman’s Azaan Al Rumhy returned a 79.
Among the notables, England’s Zane Scotland and Carlos Balmaseda settled for two-over 74s while defending champion Lee Corfield carded a 75.
South Africa’s Michael Dreyer produced the shot of the day when he aced the par-3, fifth with a seven-iron from 157 yards for his first hole-in-one in a tournament.
