Women's Golf Association of India

Strong start for Pranavi and Tvesa, Diksha lies 17^th in Sweden

Helsingborg, Sweden, May 31: Tvesa Malik and Pranavi Urs were off to a superb start with three birdies each in the first few holes of the Dormy Open Helsingborg in Sweden on the Ladies European Tour. Storms lead to play being suspended and the round is likely to be finished on Saturday.

Of the four Indians, only Diksha Dagar had completed her first round with a birdie-birdie finish for a 2-under 70 and she was Tied-17th at Allerum Golf Club.

Tvesa Malik had played seven holes and Pranavi six when play was stopped. Vani Kapoor, the fourth Indian in the field was one-under through three holes.

Diksha, starting from the tenth, birdied the 12th, 18th, first and then eighth and ninth. She dropped shots on the 13th, 15th and the fifth.

Both Tvesa and Pranavi started from the back nine and had three birdies each before play was stopped.

England’s Annabell Fuller and Switzerland’s Kim Metraux shot 5-under 67 each to share the lead. Annabell was bogey free, but Kim dropped a shot on par-5 12th and had six other birdies.

Perrine Delacour of France, Denmark’s Nicole Broch Estrup and Swedish amateur Merja Oretengren had all finished their first round at 4-under 68 each. Cara Gainer of England was also 4-under but in just eight holes as she birdied four in a row from the second to the fifth.

The leading duo of Fuller and Metraux headed out in the morning wave and completed their rounds to sit at the top of the leaderboard on five-under-par.

Play was suspended at 14.49 (local time) due to the threat of lightning with all afternoon groups having started their rounds.

At last week’s Jabra Ladies Open, Metraux’s young sister Morgane clinched her second LET title and the older Metraux sister wants to join her in the winner’s circle soon.