Tryall, Hanover, Jamaica. Monday November 15, 2021
Professional golfer Dustin Risdon out of Canada and Jamaica’s William Knibbs ended day one atop the pro and amateur leaderboard of the 54th Jamaica Open Golf Championship with scores of four under par 68 and two under par 70 respectively.
Sixty-five golfers teed off at hole number one, beginning with Brian Bailey and David Gordon Burns at 8:00 am under bright sunshine and gentle breeze at Tryall Golf Club in Hanover.
By early afternoon as the golfers ended round one of the championship, some excellent scores began to pour in. Carter Morgan of the US was the first to end on an under par score of three under 69. Stephen Grant of the USA, Benjamin Martin of Trinidad & Tobago and Landon Michelson of the USA also scored three under par 69.
Many time Jamaica Open competitor Dustin Risdon topped those scores for an error free four under par 68. His scorecard showed no bogeys, four birdies on holes number 7, 8, 11 and 16 for a one stroke lead over all the other golfers. He thought that he could do even better but looks forward to the rest of the competition.
Wesley Brown, the best placed local golfer shot even par 72 after being two under par on hole 13. He double bogeyed 14 and bogeyed 15 but birdied 17 to get back to even par. Brown was happy with day one although he feels that he could have done better.
The next best Jamaica pro was Sean Green at two over par 74 followed by Brian Bailey who was the first golfer to tee off in the championship.
William Knibbs battled stomach sickness a day ahead of the start of the Open and was doubtful for competition had a very good day one to close on two under par after shooting four under par up to the thirteenth hole. He was pleased with his performance and looks forward to retaining the trophy that he won in 2020.
Ryan Lue is the youngest golfer in the field at fourteen years of age. He posted a good score of five over par 77 on day one.
Tuesday’s second day will see leader Risdon teeing off at 11:30 am while Knibbs will start at 11:10 am at the Tryall Golf Course.