Ras Al Khaimah: English trio Max Williams, Daniel Owen, Paul Dwyer and Spain’s Francisco Perez shot matching six under 66s to share the lead in the opening round of the Mena Tour’s Ras Al Khaimah Classic at Tower links on Monday.
Between them, the foursome notched up 23 birdies and four eagles, two each by Williams and Owen, against just seven bogeys, to sit top of the leaderboard, one stroke clear of Sweden’s Jesper Alm, who mixed six birdies with a bogey.
“I played really well and am very pleased with my day’s work,” said Williams. “The course is just fantastic and in great condition,”
Of his eagles on five and 18, he added: “It’s always nice to get an eagle, let alone two. Everything just kind of fell together, ball striking, putting and ball control.”
Bahrain-based Owen lit up his opening round with five birdies and two eagles (on the fifth and the 13th) against three bogeys to put himself in contention for his maiden win on the Mena Tour.
Dwyer flew off the gate in style, carding three birdies in a row and kept the momentum rolling all through, dropping just one bogey while Spain’s Perez picked up eight shots, including five on the front nine, against two bogeys on a day when 34 players broke par.
Switzerland’s Dubai-based Michael Harradine rolled in three birdies on the back nine after making the turn at two over to hit the front in the amateur division on a 71, a good two shots ahead of a four-man group that included Qatar’s Saleh Al Kaabi.
