Jyoti Randhawa and Arjun Singh produced hot golf as they raced to the top of the leaderboard after the opening round of the Rs 1.8 million Kashmir Open, which started at the par-72 Royal Springs Golf Course, on Wednesday.

Randhawa, the No 1 player in the continent after winning the Asian PGA Tour Order of Merit crown in 2002, and Arjun Singh, twice PGA champion, shot rounds of five-under 67 each to lead a quality field. 

Chandigarh's Ranjit Singh and Delhi's Pappan were the surprise pair at tied third place, one stroke better than champion golfer of the past four years Mukesh Kumar and Uttam Singh Mundy.

Defending champion Digvijay Singh started well with a two-under 70 that gave him a tied seventh place alongside Feroz Ali of Kolkata.

Among other big names in the field, Vijay Kumar, Shiv Prakash, Sanjay Kumar and Rahul Ganapathy were among eleven players tied for the ninth place at one-under 71, while Gaurav Ghei and Sri Lankan sensation Anura Rohana were tied for the 21st place at even-par 72.

Randhawa, who started the day from the 10th tee, missed a birdie chance on the opening hole when he three-putted after reaching the par-5 green in two shots.  Thereafter the No 1 player in Asia struggled with his new putter, but managed to make four birdies and one eagle on the par-5 seventh.  The Delhi-based pro sank a 25 footer after hitting a 7-iron to the green on the seventh. He also chipped in for a birdie on the par-3 12th, the most difficult hole on the course.

"Having played in Japan and the British Open in the past few weeks, I have gotten used to the speed of the greens there. Also most of the courses have the same bent grass greens, but these are comparatively slower. I could not judge the pace very well today and missed a number of short birdie putt. But 67 is a great start and I hope to capitalise on this," said Randhawa after the round.

Arjun Singh, who is playing his first competitive round after early May, was a picture of consistency. The twice PGA champion found 17 fairways off the tee, hit 18 greens in regulation and needed 32 putts for a super-bogey free round of 67.

"I missed a couple of short putts but that's all right. I am very happy with the way I hit the ball today.  I think this is the best I've hit the ball in any round, this entire year," said the Delhi-based Arjun.

Pappan, who had to borrow the golf shoes from his brother Shamim Khan after splitting his open on the very first tee, played a bogey-free round with two birdies on either half of his journey.

Ranjit, who finished 22nd in the Order of Merit last season, also had a similar round.

Mukesh Kumar, who almost pulled out of the tournament after an emergency ear operation on his daughter, missed six birdie opportunities from less than eight feet in his 69.  He made four birdies and a solitary bogey when his tee shot on the 11th found the water.

Among the local pros, Club secretary Ghalib Shah used his local knowledge and returned the best card of three-over 75 to be tied for the 40th place.

In the amateur section, Sujan Singh led the field at a creditable one-under 71, while Anitya Chand, Sanjeev Singh and Girish Virk were at 73.  India's No 1 amateur Keshav Misra returned a card of two-over 74.

Earlier, Mr. Najamus Saqib, secretary (Tourism) inaugurated the Kashmir Open.  The main tournament finishes on Saturday and Navision Pro-Am will be played on Sunday.

SCORES (after 18 holes):

67_Jyoti Randhawa, Arjun Singh; 68_Rnjit Singh, Pappan; 69_Mukesh Kumar, Uttam Singh Mundy; 70_Digvijay Singh, Feroz Ali; 71_Vijay Kumar, Rahul Ganapathy, Shiv Prakash, Shamim Khan, Dinesh Raghuvanshi, Hem Chand, KPS Sekhon, Vinod Kumar, Dinesh Kumar, Jumman, Sujan Singh (AM); 72_Gaurav Ghwi, Anura Rohana, C Muniyappa.