MELBOURNE, Australia — Lucas Herbert shot an 8-under 63 Thursday at a soggy Victoria Golf Membership, together with an eagle on his final gap, to take the first-round lead on the Australian Open, with fellow Australian and 2022 British Open champion Cameron Smith two strokes behind.
The Australian Open and Girls’s Australian Open are being held concurrently — utilizing alternating tee occasions — and with degree prize cash for the second consecutive yr at two Melbourne sand-belt programs, the par-72 Kingston Heath (par-73 for the Girls’s Open) and par-71 Victoria.
Japanese newbie Rintaro Nakano and American Ryggs Johnston shot 65s at Kingston Heath and had been tied for second, with Smith tied for fourth after his 65, together with six birdies in a row, at Victoria within the males’s occasion, which is co-sanctioned with the European Tour.
Pumps labored effectively into the morning to clear lakes of water left by one other in a single day Melbourne rainstorm, and most well-liked lies had been in play.
Herbert stated it was “sacrilegious” that gamers may spin their balls again to flags on greens used to being “concrete” on the famed sand belt in southeast Melbourne.
“It is nice condition-wise, it is simply mushy and sluggish, which I do know they would not need right here,” he stated. “It is in all probability sacrilegious to come back to the sand belt and try to land it previous the opening, it is simply not the best way these programs are designed to be performed.”
Circumstances are unlikely to alter from a hardness perspective, with extra rain forecast for Saturday.
Smith stated he may want a rating of about 20-under par to win his first Australian Open.
“The course is unquestionably gettable,” Smith stated. “I imply, there’s the greens are mushy, and there wasn’t a lot wind on the market this morning. So quite a lot of these par fives performed actually fairly quick … if it stays like this, it will in all probability be near 20-under [to win] if there isn’t any wind, which is loopy.”
Elvis Smylie, who gained final week’s Australian PGA championship at Royal Queensland, the place Smith completed second, shot 70 Thursday at Victoria.
Australian Su Oh and South Korean newbie Hyojin Yang had been tied for the Girls’s Australian Open lead at 7 below. Oh had a 66 at Kingston Heath and Yang a 65 at Victoria.
Hannah Inexperienced had a 67 at Kingston Heath and was in third place.
After the respective cuts are made, play on Saturday and Sunday shall be solely at Kingston Heath, website of the 2028 Presidents Cup.
LPGA Tour common Minjee Lee shot 74 at Victoria whereas her brother, PGA Tour participant Min Woo Lee, had a 71 at Kingston Heath.
Defending champions JoaquÃn Niemann and Ashleigh Buhai each shot 73s at Kingston Heath.
Wenyi Ding, who gave up his spot within the Masters from successful the Asia-Pacific Novice and is enjoying as a European Tour rookie, shot 71 at Kingston Heath and was tied for thirty fifth.
