The amateur Rintaro Nakano (-7) has been one of the standout names at the start of the ISPS Handa Australian Open. The 21-year-old Japanese player delivered the best scorecard of the day at Kingston Heath GC and is placed second in the tournament.
Rintaro is only playing his second tournament on the DP World Tour and shone this Thursday with a great scorecard of 65 strokes. For a good part of the day, he flirted with matching the course record (63) but a late bogey on the last hole of the day prevented him from challenging it. The amateur has a solitary victory in the Japan Amateur Championship and already knows what it’s like to debut on the PGA Tour. He is alongside Ryggs Jhonston (-7) just one stroke off the lead. It is undoubtedly his first major performance on the international stage in a professional tournament.
Lately, it’s all about amateurs. If Nick Dunlap triumphed at the beginning of the year on the PGA Tour, Luke Clanton dazzled once again a few days ago, coming close to victory at the RSM Classic, this week the spotlight is on Nakano. We’ll see if he can withstand the odyssey that still lies ahead.
Of the twelve players currently in the top ten of the tournament, eight started the tournament in Victoria (par 71) and seven of them took advantage of the milder conditions offered by the morning session. The best of the day and the solo leader was Lucas Herbert (-8) with a round of 63 strokes in Victoria. The Australian, with 95 tournaments on the circuit under his belt, will try to fight for his fourth victory on the DP World Tour and the first national open of his career.
Who also doesn’t know what it’s like to win this tournament is Cameron Smith (-6) and this week he openly admitted how much it would mean to him to win it. After a past season where one of his worst versions was seen, the Australian seeks to redeem himself at home. The start couldn’t have gone better. A round of 65 strokes that included an excellent stretch where he did everything right and chained six consecutive birdies. He is fourth, two strokes off the lead.
On the flip side, Joaquin Niemann, the defending champion of the tournament, hasn’t started in the best way and with a round of 73 strokes finds himself beyond the 90th position. He will need to make a comeback this Friday if he wants to play the weekend in Melbourne. Elvis Smylie (-1), a local hero after his victory last week at the BMW Australia PGA Championship has started within the top sixty of the tournament.
The performance of the Armada deserves a separate chapter.
Ashleigh Buhai begins the defence of her double crown
In the women’s section, it’s important to remember that the Australian Open is being held in parallel for both men and women, and another amateur has shone brightly. The Korean Hyojin Yang (-7) has started as the tournament leader alongside local player Su Oh. Hannah Green is lurking just one stroke behind. The one who hasn’t had the best start is the double Major champion, Minjee Lee, who after a round of two over par is in 42nd place with plenty of time to turn the tournament around. The champion of the last two editions, Ashleigh Buhai has signed a scorecard at PAR at Kingston Heath and is positioned within the top twenty after the first day.
