Kota Kinabalu: Former Malaysian Ladies Amateur Open winner Michelle Koh snatched a commanding lead after the opening round of the  29th Sabah Amateur Open on Friday.

The 22-year-old Campbell University graduate birdied two of her closing three holes to card a three-under 69, taking a four-stroke advantage over national Nur Durriyah Damian at Sabah Golf & Country Club. Nurul Syahirah Saparuddin was third on 74, ahead of tournament favourite and fellow Sabahan Aretha Pan (76).

In the men’s division, Muhammad Afif Razif’s started brightly with a birdie on the first but dropped two bogeys on the fourth and 18th to settle for a one-over 73 to lead Perlis Amateur Open winner Ahmad Zahir Abd Ghani by one. Khalid Jikal and Yash Majmudar took a share of third with matching 75s. Defending champion Paul San was among a trio of players a further stroke adrift.

Leading first round scores
Men’s
73 – Muhd Afif Razif
74 – Ahmad Zahir Abd Ghani
75 – Khalid Jikal, Yash Majmudar
76 – Paul San, Solomon Emilio Rosidin, Mohd Wafiyuddin Abd Manaf
77 – Mohd Firdaus, Chan Tuck Soon, Mohd Thaznim, Fazley Chua, Ervin Chang

Ladies’
69 – Michelle Koh
73 – Nur Durriyah Damian
74 – Nurul Syahirah Afiqah Saparuddin
76 – Aretha Pan
79 – Hilferah Tan
81 – Dianne Luke, Tham Soot Yuet
83 – Nur Musfirah Ilham
84 – Rokiah Yusof Daud
87 – Ashley Lau