Quim Vidal (-6) leads in Kolkata. The Spaniard shone on the first day of the Kolkata Challenge and delivered a card of 66 strokes to climb to the top of the leaderboard.
The Catalan thus assaults one of the most ‘unknown’ cathedrals of golf. Indeed, the Royal Calcutta Golf Club is the oldest golf club outside the British Isles, founded in 1829.
A round of six under par without a mistake in which the Spaniard barely missed two greens in regulation. Very solid and with hardly any chance of making an error. The round was two under par after eleven holes when the shot of the day and the turning point in his round came.
From the fairway of the 3rd hole, 156 metres from the flag and with an 8-iron in hand, the Catalan hit a direct shot to the pin, which after bouncing and rolling a few metres, stopped just a few centimetres from holing out. A spectacular shot that served up the third birdie of the day on a silver platter. The round was uncorked. Three more successes would fall into the bag in the next five holes, tying at the top with local player Om Prakash Chouam.
The Spaniard acknowledges that on a day like today, the goddess of fortune was also on his side: “It’s true that everything went very well for me, but I had that bit of luck you need on days like today. For example, I had a couple of situations where the ball bounced off the trees and came back to the fairway.” You also need a certain humility to acknowledge it when you’re leading the tournament.
Quim arrives at the India tour in 25th place on the Road to Mallorca, on the verge of one of the twenty cards. It’s still very early, but winning would be his first victory on the HotelPlanner Tour. Quim is one of those players who, when he’s hot, aims for the top spots. He’s not a player of half measures. By the way, he equalled his best round of the year and his best start since September in Kolkata.
From the rest of the Armada, there are positive news. Especially considering that a year ago, none of the seven players who played were able to make the cut. Right now, six of the seven present in the tournament are within the weekend, although logically there’s still half the way to go.
Another Spaniard, Adri Arnaus, appears in the top ten. The player from Moia delivered a card of 69 strokes this Thursday, lifting him to ninth place in the tournament. A shame about the bogey on the last flag of the day that prevented him from finishing higher. One stroke behind is the Galician Santi Tarrio (-2). Both are in their comeback season on the circuit after losing their DP World Tour rights and are gradually acclimatising to the new circumstances.
Albert Boneta (-1) and Lucas Vacarisas (PAR) have sealed a solid start to the event, but they must not lose focus in the second round. Meanwhile, Víctor Pastor (+1) is the only one outside the provisional cut, but just one stroke from the limit. Plenty of time to turn it around.
Among the other players, the second position of local Chawrasia stands out. The local hero, a four-time champion on the DP World Tour, is seeking his first career victory in the continental second division at the age of 46.
