Centurion: Shiv Kapur picked up after a slow start as he notched up six birdies on his last 12 holes to come back with a first-round card of five-under 67 that placed him inside top-10 of the Tshwane Open here.
Playing on the 7,964 yards, the Ernie Els-designed Copperleaf Golf and Country Estate, the longest course on The European Tour, Kapur also had one bogey on the fifth, against his six birdies, while compatriot, Gaganjeet Bhullar carded a two-under 70 with five birdies and three bogeys.
An explosive finish with four birdies on the trot from the 15th hole saw Simon Dyson take a share of the lead with home favourite Trevor Fisher Jnr on seven-under. Dyson carded a flawless round of 65 to sit alongside Fisher Jnr, who also carded seven-under but played his last two holes on Friday as the first day's play was called off early because of the threat of lightning in Centurion.
Kapur had four pars and then a bogey on fifth. He birdied the seventh and then had three in a row from ninth to 11th and followed that up with two more on 13th and 15th, Bhullar, playing his rookie season in Europe, started on 10th and birdied the 12th and 16th before added three more on first, second and eighth. He dropped shots on 14th, sixth and ninth, his closing hole.
Dyson notched birdies at the second and fifth holes on the front nine and collected another shot at the 10th, but it was at the 15th where the 36-year-old really hit his stride. A birdie there was followed by another after a pitch to within a foot at the 16th, before a 15 foot putt at the 17th completed a hat-trick of gains.
Dyson signed off in style by holing from 25 feet at the last to set the pace. Dyson captured the last of his six European Tour titles at the 2011 KLM Open.
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