In a round turned into a true rollercoaster of emotions, Eugenio López-Chacarra (-4) has started his new phase in golf in the best possible way. The Madrid native, after ending his adventure in LIV Golf, has provisionally taken the lead in the International Series India, the second tournament of the Asian Tour season and the first of these special series that offer the winner of its ranking a ticket to play in the Saudi tour.
An eagle, seven birdies, two bogeys, and a triple bogey: this is how Chacarra‘s chaotic Thursday unfolded at the DLF Golf and Country Club, with a challenging start, including three pars, a triple bogey, and a bogey in his first five holes starting from the 10th tee, and an absolutely overwhelming finish, with four birdies and an eagle in the second half of the course for a total of 68 strokes. A course with narrow fairways and hard greens, full of traps, that has caught more than one player off guard in this first day of competition.
Among those who have struggled is fellow Spaniard Luis Masaveu (+9), who will take the spot Chacarra leaves vacant in Fireballs of Sergio García. Nothing went right for him in this first encounter with the Indian tournament, and with two birdies, nine bogeys, and a double bogey, he handed in a scorecard of 81 strokes, dropping to the lower part of the leaderboard and almost definitively complicating his continuation in the tournament beyond the second round on Friday, when the cut will be made.
Cameron Tringale, with half a round to play at the time of publishing this information, was emerging as Chacarra‘s main rival for the lead after the first round. Bryson DeChambeau (-2) positioned himself with a round of 70 strokes, minimizing the difficulties of using his favourite club, the driver, on this course. Abraham Ancer (PAR) managed to match the course, Sebastián Muñoz (+1) dropped a stroke to par, and Harold Varner III (+4) also had a tough time. The rest of the favourites, like Joaquín Niemann, are playing the afternoon session.
