Pranavi Urs made a solid start at the Vistron Ladies Open held in Taoyuan, scoring a two-under-par 70 in the opening round.
This performance placed her in a tie for 33rd. As the only Indian participant in the tournament, Urs recorded three birdies and one bogey. Last week, she finished tied for fourth at the Hero Women’s Indian Open in Gurugram.
Leading the tournament is ‘s Cassandra Alexander, who delivered an impressive eight-under-par 64 at the Sunrise Golf and Country Club. She holds a two-shot lead over Chinese Taipei’s Cheng-Hsuan Shih, who finished with a bogey-free 66.
Alexander, currently at the top of the Ladies European Tour (LET) Order of Merit, showcased her skill with six birdies and one eagle, completing the front nine with a score of three-under 33. She continued her strong performance with birdies on the 11th, 13th, and 14th holes, capping her round with an eagle on the 18th.
Shih’s round featured six birdies without any bogeys, securing her second place on the leaderboard.
A group of six players, including Germany’s Helen Briem, Austria’s Emma Spitz, Hong Kong’s Ginny Ding, Chinese Taipei’s Pei-Ying Tsai, and England’s Alice Hewson and Hannah Screen, tied for third with scores of five-under 67. Briem, a two-time LET winner, finished her round with an eagle on the par-five 13th hole and a birdie on the final hole. Spitz and Hewson played without any bogeys, while Screen achieved four consecutive birdies between the 13th and 16th holes. Tsai, who won earlier this year at the Sunrise Golf and Country Club on the Taiwan LPGA Tour, also finished with a bogey-free 67. Ding had six birdies and one bogey.
Ten players are tied for tenth place, including the reigning champion and five-time major winner, Tseng, along with LET winners Kelsey Bennett, Mimi Rhodes, Leonie Harm, and Celine Herbin-Marshall.
Thailand’s Pornanong Phatlum scored 71 (one-under) and is tied for 46th, just one stroke behind Urs. The second round is set to begin at 6:20 AM local time on Friday, with only the top 60 professionals and those tied with them advancing to the next stage.