Anirban Lahiri got off to a modest start, fumbling with a three-bogey stretch on the back nine to finish with a two-over 74 in the opening round of the USD 7 million CIMB Classic here today.
The 27-year-old Lahiri was going fine at one-under through 11 holes with two birdies and one bogey when he hit a rough patch with three bogeys in a row from 12th to the 14th.
However, Lahiri did not allow the round to deteriorate further as he parred the remaining four holes to live and fight another day as he was tied at 54th.
Interestingly, also at tied 54th was David Lipsky, the man Lahiri is chasing in the race for the Asian Tour Order of Merit. Major winners, Retief Goosen, Charl Schwartzel, Jason Dufner and Trevor Immelman were also tied 54th.
Sweden's Rikard Karlberg surged into a two-shot first round lead after a bogey-free seven-under-par 65.
The 27-year-old became the first Asian Tour player to hold the lead in the five-year history of the prestigious tournament, thanks to an outward 31 which included a chip-in birdie on the eighth hole at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club's West course.
Angelo Que of the Philippines, who is a three-time Asian Tour winner, American duo Billy Hurley III and Brian Stuard are tied second in the event sanctioned by the PGA TOUR and Asian Tour.
