Australians David Micheluzzi and Blake Collyer have made a great start to the British Amateur Championship after the first round of strokeplay in Scotland.
Micheluzzi, the reigning Master of the Amateurs champion and the main man in Victoria’s interstate series victory, carded a two-under par 69 at Royal Aberdeen to be tied-second.
Collyer, also a Victorian Institute of Sport scholarship-holder, shot the same score at the par-70 Murcar links, the other tournament venue, to be one-under par and tied-fourth.
South Africa’s Wilco Nienaber leads by two shots after carding a 67 at Murcar. The top 64 players after tomorrow’s stroke round go through to the matchplay phase.
Micheluzzi was happy with his score, despite three bogeys in his last four holes. “Definitely,’’ he said afterward. “You don’t know what’s going to happen with the weather and all that. To have two-under around here, I’ll take it.’’
The Victorian said he felt at home with the conditions which mimicked the Melbourne sandbelt. “Not as quick, but definitely runs out. Very tight as well. I feel at home.’’
This week’s winner gets automatic entry into the Open Championship next month, next year’s Masters and US Open.
“To have a chance of playing in some of the majors is massive, it sticks in your mind but you’ve just got to do what you’ve got to do,’’ said Micheluzzi.