Indian golfer Rahil Gangjee suffered a rare two-shot penalty for coming late for his tee time before recovering to tied eighth on the opening day of the Fiji International here today.
Gangjee quickly made up for the forgettable start with a solid showing that included a closing eagle enroute to an opening three-under 69.
He was the best among the three Indians in the field this week at the USD 1.14m event.
Gangjee was tied eighth and three shots behind the leader Daniel Pearce (66) of New Zealand.
S Chikkarangappa (74) was tied-67th, while Shubhankar Sharma (75) was tied 84th.
"I got confused with my tee time for the first time in my career even though I remember looking at it properly. It was a lesson learnt," said Gangjee.
"It was windy out there but I was prepared for it. I just stayed patient and I managed to hit some good shots out there today. I was waiting for my birdie chances but it's so windy out there you can't really force it. You just have to let it come to you."
The 38-year-old Gangjee was disappointed for mixing up his tee times but made up for it by nailing four birdies and a closing eagle against a bogey.
Gangjee had birdies on 13th, 15th, first and sixth before dropping a bogey on 16th and eagled the 18th.
Malaysia's Gavin Green, chasing his first win, tamed the blustery conditions at the Natadola Bay Championship Golf Course to sign for an opening four-under-par 68.
Starting from the 10, Green fired one eagle and three birdies against a bogey to turn in 32 before reeling nine straight pars on his way home.
He trails leader Daniel Pearce of New Zealand by two shots in tied-fourth position.
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