Veer Ahlawat Tops Indian Contenders at British Masters Open

Sutton Coldfield (England), Aug 22 (PTI) – On the opening day of the Betfred British Masters, Veer Ahlawat emerged as the top-performing Indian golfer with a 1-over par score of 73, placing him in a tied position for 67th at the event held at the prestigious Belfry Hotel & Resort.

Meanwhile, Shubhankar Sharma finished the day at 2-over 74, landing him in a tied position for 89th, which puts him at risk of another missed cut in the tournament.

Starting on the back nine, Ahlawat faced mixed results with a combination of four bogeys on holes one, nine, 16, and 18, and three birdies on the third, seventh, and 17th holes. This performance saw him join Indian-origin player Aaron Rai, who also carded a 1-over 73, in a joint 66th place on the leaderboard.

At the top of the leaderboard, four players share the lead after posting impressive rounds of 6-under 66. The leaders include Marcel Siem, Matthias Schwab, Thomas Aiken, and Haotong Li. Hot on their heels and just one stroke behind are local favorite Matt Fitzpatrick and Keita Nakajima, who are tied for fifth.