Lindell had a tough Thursday on the greens – “With shots like these, I really should be under par”
Oliver Lindell’s campaign at the Volvo China Open in Shanghai got off to a shaky start. His front nine in particular (10-18) was sluggish. The Finn failed to make any birdies, whilst three bogeys were recorded on the front nine. The reason for his failure can largely be found in one specific area.
“Regarding my ball striking, it was actually a pretty good day. I made a couple of bigger mistakes, which led to the bogeys. On the 14th hole, I hit an iron into the water, and on the 18th, my drive went left into the rough. The third bogey, however, came from below the green after three putts. The main reason for the result was that I only sank one putt from over a metre away, and even that was just under two metres.”
The day’s only birdie, on the 4th hole, meant a total score of +2. That is just enough to place him among the top 100 players (T94), so there is still room for improvement on Friday with the weekend in mind. Lindell has not managed to shoot under par in this competition even once, so a round like that would be welcome tomorrow.
“There wasn’t anything else wrong with my game today apart from my putting. My putts felt good, but they just wouldn’t drop on the first round. With shots like these, I should definitely be under par, but I’ll just have to try again tomorrow,” said Lindell.
A domestic sensation has risen to the top of the competition – Yanhan Zou, aged just 18. Zhou, born in 2008, is a remarkable -9 after 12 holes. Lindell, who was considered a similarly promising talent just over 10 years ago in Finland, has also taken note of the young newcomer.
“There’s nothing particularly special about his game – it was the same story in the last tournament. He’s a really good putter.”
Thursday’s morning tee-off did not offer the usual advantage. The opening round was rainy, and the wind was stronger in the morning than in the afternoon. Lindell will tee off for his second round in the afternoon local time, at 7.20 am Finnish time. Hopefully, the Porvoo native’s shots will also be shown on TV, as the trio is one of the groups being filmed today.