Asian Tour: Sarit shows few signs of Macau meltdown, Johnson makes solid start in Philippines
Sarit Suwannarut takes narrow one-shot lead after first round of International Series Philippines, with Dustin Johnson close behind
It turns out Dustin Johnson did not need that close a look at Sta Elena Golf Club after all and Sarit Suwannarut is suffering few ill effects from his final-round meltdown in Macau.
The Thai golfer, who went into last weekend with a two-shot lead and promptly carded a three-over 73, fired off an opening eight-under-par 64 in the International Series Philippines to lead the star-studded field by a shot on Thursday.
Sarit, who wound up fourth at the SJM Macau Open, was just ahead of Japan’s Kazuki Higa, who has already won twice on the Asian Tour this season, with just two shots separating the next 11 golfers.
A “perfect” round included just a single bogey on the par-3 second, his 11th hole of the day, although that did little to offset the five birdies on an impressive back nine.
“I’ve been playing pretty good,” Sarit said. “I mean, before a round, I know I can share the ball number with my caddie and hit the shots. I tell myself, you can hit it, you can do it.
“It’s not as long as some other golf courses, but the rough is pretty thick. If you miss your position, it is really hard to get it out. You have to be hitting well and putting it in a good position to make a good number.”