Gaganjeet Bhullar carded a 3-under 70 in the opening round of the US$2 million International Series Morocco on 12 June, finishing as the best-placed Indian in the field at Tied-18th on the par-73 Red Course of Royal Golf Dar Es Salam in Rabat. The result, however, was a story of two contrasting halves — a blistering front nine undone by a leaky back nine.

Bhullar's Round: Brilliance and Bogeys

Bhullar opened with four consecutive pars before finding his rhythm. A hat-trick of birdies on the front nine sent him to the turn at 4-under 32, with a fifth gain on the 12th hole briefly lifting him to 5-under. The back nine, however, told a different story: bogeys on the 13th, 15th, and 17th holes cost him three shots before a consolation birdie on the closing hole sealed a 70.

Bhullar, a four-time IGPL winner and the most successful Indian player in Asian Tour history with 11 wins, last claimed an Asian Tour title in the second half of 2023 in Indonesia. He arrives in Morocco having recorded a T-26 in Singapore as his best World Ranking event finish in recent outings, and a T-27 at the AM Green IGPL Bharath Classic last week at the Mazagan Beach Golf Resort.

Leaderboard: Thai Star Pavit Sets the Pace

Topping the leaderboard after Round 1 is Thai golfer Pavit Tangkamolprasert, the runner-up at the International Series Japan earlier this year, who fired a superb 8-under 65. Pavit, who started on the back nine, made four birdies before the turn and capped his round with four consecutive birdies to storm clear of the field.

Two shots back at 6-under 67 are Travis Smyth of Australia — the International Series Japan winner and a two-time winner on tour this year — and Korean Younghan Song, who was bogey-free throughout his round. American Andy Ogletree, a three-time International Series champion, shot a 5-under 68 with a storming eagle-birdie finish, joining Hong Kong's Taichi Kho, Thai Sadom Kaewkanjana, Denmark's Lucas Bjerregaard, and American Grant Haefner at that mark.

How the Other Indians Fared

Karandeep Kochhar, Shaurya Bhattacharya, SSP Chawrasia, and Ajeetesh Sandhu each carded 1-under 72 to sit at Tied-40th, making them the joint second-best Indians in the field. Anirban Lahiri, the only Indian competing on the LIV League, returned an even-par 73 for Tied-60th.

Further down, Rashid Khan (75, T-108), Shubham Jaglan (76, T-123), Aryan Roopa Anand (80, T-152), and Udayan Mane (83, T-155) will need significantly lower second rounds to make the weekend cut.

LIV Golf Stars and Defending Champion

Among the notable LIV Golf names in the field, Bubba Watson posted a solid 4-under 69, while Doyeob Mun of Korea Golf Club was tied 18th alongside Bhullar with a 70. Sergio Garcia endured a difficult day, carding a 74. Defending champion Scott Vincent of Zimbabwe opened with a steady 3-under 70. The second round will determine who advances to the weekend at the Red Course.