Aug 28: Vanchai Luangnitikul led a group of Thai stars on top of the leaderboard on the opening day of the US$500,000 Mandiri Indonesia Open, making the most of calm morning conditions at Jakarta’s Pondok Indah Golf Course on Thursday.

The 23-year-old from Phuket, who has been playing mainly on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) the past two seasons, showed he was not afraid to challenge the big boys with a seven-under-par 65. The round included just one bogey, on the par-three eighth (his 17th), but he bounced back in style with a closing birdie on the par-five ninth.

Trailing Vanchai in tied second place were compatriots Suteepat Prateeptienchai and Tanapat Pichaikool, who were both bogey-free in their rounds of 66.

Eight players were tied for fourth place on 67, a group that included India’s Viraj Madappa, who is making a comeback after a long injury layoff.

Tanapat Pichaikool of Thailand. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

Tied alongside Madappa were a quartet of Americans, Micah Shin, MJ Maguire, Austen Truslow and Charles Porter. Hong Kong’s Taichi Kho and Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin also shot rounds of 67.

Vanchai, who finished tied second in the BNI Ciputra Golfpreneur Tournament on the ADT last year, nearly 26 kilometers down the road at Damai Indah Golf, showed his love for Indonesian courses once again with a solid round.

“My tee shots were really good all day. I kept finding the fairways and giving myself birdie chances. I made a lot of good putts early in the round and kept the momentum going,” said Vanchai, who is playing only his second Asian Tour event since his two starts in Thailand in 2022.

“I have been playing on the ADT and it has been a great training ground for me. I think I have improved a lot and am bringing all that experience into this week.”

The bogey on the eighth was because of a “bad tee shot”, but Vanchai was particularly pleased with a three-wood second shot from 305 yards on the ninth, which led to the bounce-back birdie.

Suteepat Prateeptienchai of Thailand. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

Tanapat’s round was the lowest among the second half of the draw as the wind picked up around the golf course. That made his bogey-free effort even more commendable.

After making six birdies – three on either half of the golf course – the 25-year-old Tanapat said: “The wind picked up when I was around the eighth hole, and then dropped and picked up again.

“The last couple of holes were interesting because I did not hit good tee shots but still managed to save my par and made a birdie on the last.

“Just did the standard stuff that we golfers do in the wind – tried to keep it low. But really happy to have finished the round without a bogey.”

The highlight of Suteepat’s round was the eagle on the first, but also important was that he finished the round without a bogey.

“I felt great today. Everything in my game seemed perfect,” said the highest-ranked OWGR player in the field. “Obviously, played early in the morning when the wind was low.

“The golf course is in fantastic condition. It’s so much better than when we played here a couple of years ago. Hopefully, I can do the same tomorrow.”

Viraj Madappa of India. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour

Madappa, the 27-year-old from Kolkata, is playing on a medical exemption after missing out on nearly two years of action because of a lower disc injury in the back. He impressed everyone when he won a domestic tournament in India in his first start after the injury earlier this year.

Winner of the 2018 Take Solutions Masters on the Asian Tour at the age of 20, Madappa said the long time spent recuperating changed his perspective about golf.

“I did not play at all for almost 15-16 months. I got back to swinging the club properly only in March this year. And it has led to a big change in perspective and how I view my game.

“Just before I injured myself, I was really hard on myself, putting a lot of unnecessary pressure in terms of what I was expecting from myself. I had stopped enjoying the game. However, it was difficult and frustrating to stay out of the game for so long and it made me realise how much I missed golf and how much I actually loved it.

“So, I am coming back with that thought and the feeling of just playing with gratitude and joy. I am hitting shots like it’s fun to hit. I think that has helped a lot.”

Defending champion Steve Lewton was left frustrated by a late triple bogey on the par-four 16th hole, which saw him slip to tied 75th place at even-par.