Fisher Sets Pace in Nedbank Golf Challenge


Ross Fisher fired a 6-under 66 to take a two-stroke lead in the Nedbank Golf Challenge. The limited-field, 30-player event got underway at the Gary Player Country Club in Sun City, South Africa.

Fisher, a 34-year-old from England, carded seven birdies and a bogey to stake an early edge over Frenchman Alexander Levy, Germany's Marcel Siem and South African George Coetzee.

Fisher said he took advantage of the par-5s; he birdied all three of them on the course. "I think the par-5s are all scoreable. They are all reachable, but you've still got to hit two shots," he told the European Tour's website.

"So par-5s are quite key, but again, there's a lot more scoreable holes out there. There's quite a lot of short par-4s where if you get your driver in good position, you've got short irons into the greens, and the greens are putting well," added Fisher, whose only dropped shot came on the par-3 16th. "So as long as you can read the putts well, there's definitely some scoreable holes out there."

Fisher, Coetzee and Siem were in the same group and seemed to draw each other along as both had good days; Coetzee had five birdies - including four on the front nine - and a bogey Thursday. "I'm sure we fed off each other. I'm sure (Fisher is) grateful for me, too," said the 28-year-old from Pretoria.

Siem also got into the act when, on the par-4 17th hole, he holed out from 183 yards with an 8-iron for an eagle. The shot earned him a Volvo V40 T5 automobile.

"It's not the best golf shot at all for me in my career, but I tried to draw it in and stayed straight and hit the fringe, and yeah, I had a firm bounce to the left and yeah, it was really cool to hole that one," said Siem, who noted he'll give the car to his mother.

Trailing Fisher by four are South Africans Charl Schwartzel, Louis Oosthuizen and Tim Clark, Scotland's Stephen Gallacher, Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez, and American Brooks Koepka.

Koepka won the Turkish Airlines Open two weeks ago and was recently named the European Tour's Rookie of the Year.

The other two Americans in the field, Brendon Todd and Kevin Na, opened with a 73 and 77, respectively. Reigning U.S. Open champion Martin Kaymer carded a 74.

For all the scores, visit http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2015/tournamentid=2014095/leaderboard/index.html.