WATCH: UAE's No.1 golfer Ahmad Skaik analyses his brilliant first round at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship

A superb two under par 69 on the opening day of the prestigious Asia Pacific Amateur Championship left the UAE’s No.1 golfer, Ahmad Skaik, just two shots off the lead at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club.

Having officially started the tournament with the opening tee shot, Skaik successfully navigated the opening five holes at level par, before picking up his first shot of the day on the sixth, but immediately gave it back to the course on the next.

The Emirati youngster bounced straight back on the eighth to get back in the red, before birdies at 10 and 14 saw him move into a tie for second on three under par. A bogey on the iconic 18th wasn’t the ending Skaik’s brilliant round deserved, but it left him sitting pretty on the leaderboard after 18 holes.