Purcell best on a mixed day for Irish on tour
NCHEON, SOUTH KOREA - APRIL 27: Antoine Rozner of France reacts after a birdie putt on the eighteenth green on Day One of the Korea Championship Presented by Genesis at Jack Nicklaus GC Korea on April 27, 2023 in South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
Gary Hurley and Tom McKibbin have their work cut out to make the cut after opening with three-over 75s in the 2023 Korea Championship Presented by Genesis.
The Irish duo were tied for 111th at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea where Antoine Rozner equalled his lowest career score with a bogey-free round of 63 to open up a commanding four-shot lead.
The Frenchman started from the tenth tee in the morning and fired six birdies on his front nine before picking up three more shots after the turn to get to nine under par.
None of the afternoon starters were able to get close as he continued the form that has seen him pick up his third DP World Tour title at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open and record three other top-ten finishes so far in the 2023 season.
Home favourite Park Sanghyun, who finished third on one of the DP World Tour's previous stops in Korea at the 2011 Ballantine's Championship, and England's Andy Sullivan are Rozner's nearest challengers on five under.
South Korean Lee Hyungjoon was among those another shot further back in a tie for fourth, alongside Alexander Knappe, Pablo Larrazábal, Alexander Björk and Yannik Paul, who finished his round in style with an eagle on the 18th.
Hurley was two-under par through the turn but he covered the front nine in five-over 41 for his 75.
McKibbin made three birdies but back-to-back double-bogeys at the 14th and 15th and a bogey at the 16th in the middle of his opening nine proved costly.
Tom Lewis. Picture: Getty Images
Little went wrong for Rozner, who made nine birdies.
"A lot of things went my way today,” he said. "I obviously played well, but you need a bit of luck to shoot 63, especially on a hard golf course like this one.
"I holed a really good one on the 11th hole, my second hole of the day. It went straight in the centre of the hole and I thought ‘maybe it could be a good day’ and it was. I’m really pleased, I hit some superb shots, amazing putts as well. Really great start.
"Played super solid, I played the two par fives really well (on his front nine) and still had two more to go. It’s a tough course, you have to keep grinding and you have to focus on the shots. I did that well.
"I didn’t have so many chances on my back nine, but when I had a chance I made it. It was a pure day of golf, one of those days when you wish you could play like this all the time.
It was a mixed day for the Irish at the Challenge Tour’s Abu Dhabi Challenge where Portmarnock’s Conor Purcell’s three-under 69 let him tied 12th at Abu Dhabi Golf Club.
He was five strokes behind England’s Tom Lewis, whose 64 gave him a one-shot lead over countryman Joshua Grenville-Wood and Frenchman Julien Sale.
Rosapenna’s Ruaidhri McGee was joint 46th after a 71 as Jonny Caldwell and Dermot McElroy shared 61st after level par 72s.
Paul Dunne and Niall Kearney were joint 94th after two-over 74s.
