Riyadh: Craig Hinton and Gabriel Canizares shot matching seven-under-par 65s to share the lead after round one of the American Express Dirab Golf Championship, round six of the 11-stage Mena Golf Tour, in Saudi Arabia on Monday.
Playing in the day’s second group, England’s Hinton took full advantage of decent morning conditions at Dirab Golf and Country Club, reeling off one eagle and six birdies against a lone bogey while Canizares of Spain went bogey-free as the duo moved three shots clear of rising English amateur James Allan.
Prince Khaled Saud Al Faisal spearheaded the Saudi challenge with a two-over 74 after making the turn at two under as Morocco’s Ayoub Lguirati fired a three-under 69, highlighted by three birdies in a row from the 14th, to hit the front in the Mena Division for the Shaikh Maktoum Golf Foundation Award.
Shaikh Khaled raced to three under after the 13th, but a triple bogey on the par-5, 15th which was followed by a double bogey on the 17th prevented him from finishing the opening round in red figures.
But it was Hinton and Canizares who had both been strong off the tee and just as good with the putter, who took a three shot lead.
“It’s one of my best rounds on the Mena Golf Tour,” said England’s Hinton, 27, who played on the Asian Tour in 2014. “This is one course where wind doesn’t come into play and that helped.
“I picked up three birdies on the front nine which kind of built up the momentum and kept the things going.
Of his eagle on the par five 13th following birdies on holes 11 and 12, he added: “I hit my seven iron from 190 yards to within six feet and holed the ensuing putt.”
He then birdied the last after dropping his only shot on 17.
“The key to going low on this course is to keep the ball in play. You can find yourself in big trouble if you miss the tree-lined fairways which are quite narrow,” he added.
Two under at the turn, Canizares picked up five shots during a five-hole stretch on the back nine, studded with an eagle on the par-five, 15th, to round off a great day at work.
Elsewhere, Spain’s Xavier Puig joined English amateur Elliott Oxlade and Morocco’s Lguirati in a tie for the fourth after returning a three-under 69, one ahead fellow Spaniard Mariano Ochoa, South Africa’s Thriston Arthur Lawrence and England’s Chris McDonnell.
Pakistan’s Shafiq Masih, who won the inaugural American Express Dirab Golf Championship in 2012, settled for a level-par 72 as England’s Luke Joy, a two-time winner on the Mena Golf Tour, shot a 71 for a share of the 10th place.