England’s rising star Matthew Fitzpatrick yesterday enjoyed a fine start to the new European Tour season, firing a four-under round as Sergio Garcia struggled in testing conditions at the Hong Kong Open.
Playing in a group with compatriot Tommy Fleetwood and defending champion Sam Brazel, Fitzpatrick hit six birdies to finish with a 66 on the par-70 course, putting him in second place one stroke off the first-round lead.
“If it plays like this and I shoot the same score for the next three days, I’ll be very, very happy,” Fitzpatrick, 23, said. “It’s not easy with how strong the wind is and how easy it switches direction. It’s a tough golf course without any wind, so it makes it very tricky.”
Olympic champion Justin Rose had predicted following the previous day’s pro-am warm-up that four-under would be a good score given the course’s rapid greens and swirling winds, and he duly finished two-under.
“It’s tricky... I think the course played a couple of shots harder than they typically are today,” Rose said.
India’s S.S.R. Chawrasia was the overnight leader after shooting the day’s only 65. The majority of the competitors failed to make par, although Taiwan’s Lin Wen-tang shot a one-under 69.
Masters champion Garcia struggled to find his form, starting his round with a bogey and hitting a double-bogey on 10 after his ball rolled back into a creek.
The Spaniard also found the trees on the 18th — although he delighted the crowd by following a fluffed chip on the eighth with a second attempt which rolled straight into the hole.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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