Joshua White is red hot as he hits a course record 62 at the Golf Citizen Masters Al Ain
Joshua White conjured a piece of magic, firing a career-best nine-under 62 to set up a new course record and seize early control of the GOLF CITIZEN Masters Al Ain on Monday.
In imperious form off the tee, the 23-year-old Englishman reeled off five birdies on the front nine and four on the back in his bogey-free round – which incidentally is also best score ever on the MENA Golf Tour – to move four shots ahead of a six-man group headed by Morocco’s Ahmed Marjane.
The English duo of James Housby and Matthew Swales, the Spanish pairing of Jose Bondia Gil and Xavier Puig and Scotland’s Paul Doherty complete the group sitting on five under.
With five players, including amateur James Yeomans, moving into a tie for the eighth a shot further back on four under, the leaderboard wore a crowded look, promising absorbing golf over the next two days.
With the course offering a plenty of scoring opportunities as many as 26 players ended up in red figures, amply reflecting on the perfect conditions at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting and Golf Club.
Hailing his round as fantastic, White said: “It feels nice to come off with a solid, smooth round. I have been really working really hard on my game and it finally paid off,” said White, who bettered the previous course record of a 63 stood in the name of his countryman Zane Scotland he posted in the final round of the 2012 MENA Tour Championship.
“Everything fell in place. Every time I needed to keep the momentum going, I managed to hit a good shot which was the key,” said White who chipped in for birdie on the 17th, a shot he described as the most pleasing effort of the day because of an awkward lie.
Marjane, the winner of the RAK Classic earlier this month, also made his presence felt with another display of top quality consistent golf.
“It was a good round, but not a very good round. I missed a lot of easy putts, some even from two feet. Had I holed all of them, I should have ended up eight-under, but that’s golf. You can never have a perfect day,” said 22-year-old from Rabat, who is currently leading the MENA Division, two shots ahead of compatriots Younes El Hassani and Antoine Maes and Lebanon’s Peter Badawy.
England’s Housby was equally pleased with his day’s effort. “I played pretty steady golf and hit a lot of fairways and greens. And what you do that you can always expect a good day,” said the Englishman who bogeyed the 12th and 13th but responded well with three birdies in the last four holes.
Scotland’s Doherty was four under after the 12th, but double-bogeyed the 13th when he missed the green on the left and three putted. “Barring that blemish on the 13th, I think I did well and hope to keep the momentum rolling all the way through.”
Leading first round scores (par 71):
62 – Joshua White (England)
66 – Ahmed Marjane (Morocco), James Housby (England), Matthew Swales England), Jose Bondia Gil (Spain), Xavier Puig (Spain), Paul Doherty (Scotland)
67 – James Yeomans (amateur-England), Tyler Hogarty (South Africa), Tom Buchanan (Scotland), Daniel Owen (England), Lee Corfield (England)
68 – Younes El Hassani (Morocco), Gary Knight (US), Juan Salcedo (Mexico), Antoine Maes (amateur-Morocco), Peter Badawy (Lebanon), Luke Towler (England), Trevor Marshall (New Zealand), Ashley Rees (England)
69 – Zane Scotland (England), Amine Joudar (Morocco), Santiago Puigmoltó (Spain), Mehdi Saissi (amateur-Morocco)
70 – Carlos Balmaseda (Spain), Matt Turner (England)
