John Parry and Benjamin Hebert each posted bogey-free eight under par rounds of 63 to take a share of the Magical Kenya Open presented by absa lead after the opening day at Muthaiga Golf Club.
England’s Parry, who has already won on the 2025 Race to Dubai, set the target early in the day and it was only matched by his fellow HotelPlanner Tour graduate Hebert, who birdied his final hole to join him on eight under, one clear of South Africa’s Jayden Schaper.
Parry claimed his second DP World Tour victory and first for 14 years when he won the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open in December and he made the perfect start in his quest for a second win of the season with back-to-back birdies on the tenth and 11th, his opening two holes.
Further birdies arrived at the 13th and 15th before he picked up a fifth of the day at the par five 18th to make the turn at five under.
Consecutive gains at the third and fourth, followed by an eighth and final birdie at the par-five seventh was enough to set the target before the afternoon groups started.
John Parry: “I hit it well. I kept it in play pretty well. I was quite aggressive today off the tee where I hit a lot of drivers where maybe some guys won’t.
“I played last year and there’s certain holes where it’s just tight off the tee, it’s hard enough hitting it in the fairway with an iron and I generally drive it pretty well so I thought I might as well try and take advantage of those situations.”
With the African sun beating down on Muthaiga Golf Club and the fairways and greens hardening as the day went on, scoring became more difficult but Hebert stayed patient in putting together an impressive opening effort.
He wasted no time in getting on the board with an eagle at the tenth, before adding birdies at the 17th and 18th. Another pair of birdies arrived at the second and third, then he moved to within one of the lead with a three at the par fourth sixth.
The 38-year-old, who regained his playing privileges via the HotelPlanner Tour last year, then grabbed a share of the lead with a closing birdie at the ninth in Nairobi.
South African Schaper was also bogey-free in his seven under 64, with Denmark’s Jacob Skov Olesen and Korean Wooyoung Cho sharing fourth on six under.
