Anika Varma shoots bogey three-under 69 at Women's Amateur Asia Pacific

Anika Varma shoots bogey three-under 69 at Women's Amateur Asia Pacific

Indian golfer Anika Varma started her Women's Amateur Asia Pacific with a solid 3-under 69 to grab tied-fifth position at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club in Khalifa City.

Anika smashed three birdies to finish the first day as the best-placed Indian at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club.

Natthakritta Vongtaveelap of Thailand grabbed the first-round lead after firing a blistering 7-under 65 at the 78 player's tournament.

A pack of three golfers, Chun-Wei Wu of Chinese Taipei, Mizuki Hashimoto of Japan and Viera Permada Rosada of Indonesia, were tied second place at four-under-par 68.

Avani Prashanth and Sifat Sagoo
Avani Prashanth and Sifat Sagoo

Two-time WGAI champion Avani Prashanth and the talented Sifat Sagoo both posted 1-under 71 to share tied-21st after the end of day one.

Apart from Anika, Avani, and Sagoo, the event features five more Indian golfers, including Natalii Gupta and Hannah Charley Allan, who were nominated by the host nation UAE.