Scottish golfer off to flying start to new season in South Africa

Calum Fyfe produced a fast start to the newly-branded Hotel Planner Tour to sit handily-placed in the season-opening SDC Open in South Africa.

The Glaswegian, who is playing in the event at Zebula Golf Estate & Spa in Limpopo along with compatriot Gregor Graham through a national spot category, carded a five-under-par 67 after starting birdie-birdie-birdie.

The effort left Fyfe, winner of last year’s Scottish Par 3 Championship, sitting just one shot off the lead as home player Altin van der Merwe set the pace in the $375,000 event.

Calum Fyfe made a great start to the new Hotel Planner Tour season in South Africa | Octavio Passos/Getty Images

“It was solid,” said Fyfe of his day’s work, which also included an eagle. “I had been playing well the last couple of days in practice and I knew a low score was out there.

“It was just a case of having the mindset of being aggressive from the get go whereas before I’d never really done that. So today I was trying to shoot a low one.

“I couldn’t have asked for any better than that (his 3-3-3- start), hitting great shots for each of them and only had five feet maximum for the putts - hopefully I can keep that up.

“For my eagle, I hit a good drive down the middle, but it took a big massive kick left into the rough and I was debating whether to go for it or not before going with a 4-iron from about 250 yards and hit it to six feet and rolled it in - happy days!”

This is only the 27-year-old’s 42nd event on the DP World Tour’s feeder circuit, having shown last season that he has the game to start making proper headway.

“You’ve got to hit the fairways as you’ve got no chance if you don’t as the greens are too firm and fast,” he added. “I did that well today and gave myself loads of chances and, when I did miss the green, I did a good job of getting up and down.”

His sole dropped shot came at his closing hole, but it didn’t take the shine off his day. “Yeah, I’d definitely taken five under whereas years gone past I’d be upset now,” he said of the finish. “I hit a great shot into my last hole but it just flew miles due to me forgetting I was in South Africa!”

In his first outing back on the second-tier circuit after losing his main-tour card at the end of last season, David Law opened with a 69 to sit alongside Daniel Young. Graham, meanwhile, had to settle for a 74 in his first outing on the circuit since turning professional.

Elsewhere, Grant Forrest fared best of six Scots in the field with a three-under 69 as Englishman Marcus Armitage shot a superb 63 to sit four shots clear of the field in the first round of the DP World Tour’s Ras Al Khaimah Championship.