India's Jeev Milkha Singh made yet another impressive start on the Japan Golf Tour when he shot a bogey-free round of seven-under 65 to lead an impressive field at the 120 million yen Coca-Cola Tokai Classic after the opening round at the par-72 Miyoshi Country Club in Aichi.
Despite battling a terrible case of flu, the Chandigarh golfer made five birdies and an eagle as he led by one stroke over Korean Yong-eun Yang and the local duo of Takuya Taniguchi and Toru Taniguchi.
Japanese Tour superstars, Shingo Katayama and Katsumasa Miyamoto were among six tied for the fifth place at five-under 67.
"It was the most unbelievable round I ever played. I was completely drained out because of the flu and my throat was hurting so bad that I was even having trouble swallowing water. I went to the first tee with absolutely no expectations from the round. I just wanted to play regulation golf. As it turned out, it was one of my best rounds in a long, long time," said the 33-year-old on phone from Aichi.
Jeev started late in the day from the first tee and his plan of reaching the greens in regulation worked to perfection as he played his first 12 holes in regulation. Birdies on the par-3 fifth and the par-5 seventh saw him make the turn at two-under. There were further birdies on the 11th and 12th, but the play of the day came on the par-5 15th.
Playing against wind, Jeev reached the 570-yard hole, the longest of the course, with two brilliant shots, and then sank a massive 30-foot curling putt for an eagle which catapulted him on top of the leaderboard.
Jeev, who has made 11 cuts in 17 starts and is currently ranked 44th player on the Japanese Tour, signed off in style when he made yet another tricky birdie putt on the 18th to finish at seven-under. In all, he found 15 greens in regulation and needed just 26 putts to complete the round.
Leading scores (after 18 holes): 65 _ Jeev Milkha Singh; 66 _ Yong-eun Yang, Takuya Taniguchi, Toru Taniguchi; 66 _ Shingo Katayama, Katsumasa Miyamoto, Gregory Meyer, Sushi Ishigaki, Norio Shinozaki, Mamo Osanai, Kazuhiro Takami.
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