LAHORE: Mohammad Shabbir and Mohammad Tariq remained joint leaders on the first day of the Punjab Open Golf Championships with identical card of par-72 under very cool and foggy conditions at the Raya Golf and Country Club here on Friday.

Shabbir, country’s top ranked player, ended the day with the help of four birdies on holes 5, 8, 12, 15 and 11 regulation pars, besides a messy double bogie on ninth hole and bogies on the 14th and 16th holes. The double bogie was indeed a rare mishap for a champion like Shabbir.

Tariq, the other leader, is graduating into the front ranks of champions and through an admirable display he managed to stay on track amongst the front-runners. His score of gross 72 was the result of six birdies on holes 2, 8, 10, 13, 15 and 16 seven pars and a number of stroke losses. The strokes were lost on holes 1, 9, 11 and 14 and a double bogie on the third hole.

Others who finished well enough included Aashir Masih (Gymkhana) with a round of 74 and Shahid Javed Khan (Royal Palm, 74) while Sunny Masih (Gymkhana) is at 75.

Other mentionables are Mohammad Safdar, Zulfiqar, Nisar Hussain and Aadil Jehangir, all 76.

Out of a total of 88 professionals, only 15 managed to show their prowess on a day when the chill was penetrating and unsympathetic; most of the participating professionals lost their focus and abilities to the nip and stinging coolness and the demands of the challenging Defence Raya Golf Course.

As a result, they let their chances of performing well fade away. The determined ones like Shabbir, Tariq, Matloob, Shahid and Aashir had their own success stories carved out through immaculate shot making, stirring stroke play and composed putting on the greens.

In the race for honours in amateur section Ghazanfar Mahmood leads the race. He had an opening round of gross 73. Others in line are Sajid Khan (76), Tariq Mahmood (76), Mohammad Rehman (77) and Ayaz Saleem (79).

Published in Dawn, December 20th, 2014