Gregory Havret part of a three-way share of the lead at Tshwane Open
Friday 3 March 2017 22:12, UK
Gregory Havret fired six birdies in an eight-hole stretch to grab a share of a three-way tie for the lead after the opening round of the Tshwane Open.
The Frenchman reached the turn in 29 on his way to a six-under 65 at Pretoria CC, with Haydn Porteous and Alexander Bjork also sharing top spot after both carding blemish-free rounds.
Havret followed a birdie-three at the second with a hat-trick of gains from the fourth, before picking up another shot at the eighth and holing a putt from off the ninth green.
Bogeys at the 11th and 13th saw Havret lose the two-shot cushion he held at the turn, as Porteous moved up the leaderboard with a first-nine 32.
Havret tapped in for birdie at the short 14th and converted from 15 feet at the penultimate hole to set the clubhouse target, which Porteous matched by draining a 20-footer at the fourth and close range putt at the sixth.
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"I haven't been holing a lot of putts over the past couple of months, but today I hit a lot of good putts and was seeing the line a lot better," Porteous said.
"To finish par-par at the end after giving myself two really good birdie chances was a bit disappointing, but that was my third round without a bogey now in four rounds."
Bjork was the pick of the afternoon starters, with a birdie-three at the 10th - his opening hole - the first of six gains in a bogey-free display.
Duncan Stewart bogeyed his final hole to close an opening-round 66, leaving him alongside fellow Brit Toby Tree and three other players on five under.
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Mikko Korhonen and home star Justin Walters are also one off the pace, with Australia's Ben Eccles completing the set after birdieing four of his final five holes.
A final-hole eagle from Matthew Southgate closed a four-under 67, with 2015 champion George Coetzee joining Richie Ramsay and Graeme Storm a further stroke back.
Top seed Jordan Smith started his week with an opening-round 69 and Jaco Van Zyl, the only other player in the field from the world's top 100, shot a three-over 74.
Watch the Tshwane Open throughout the week live on Sky Sports 4 - your home of golf. Live coverage begins on Friday from 8.30am.
