Staff WriterInternational Series Macau charged out of the gate today with a display of dazzling shot-making, led by the inimitable Patrick Reed from the United States.
The former Masters champion carded a sizzling six-under-par 64 at Macau Golf & Country Club, giving him a one-stroke lead over Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz, who matched the course record with an astonishing 61.
It’s no small feat topping the leaderboards in an event presented by Wynn, especially when you have a fiery contender like Ortiz scorching the back nine with seven birdies—four of them on the bounce starting at the 10th.
His 10-under total for the day equalled Thailand’s Rattanon Wannasrichan’s benchmark of 61 from last season.
American John Catlin once produced a mind-boggling 59 here, but that was during a round featuring preferred lies, so Ortiz’s gem rises further in stature.
Two more Aussies, Lucas Herbert and Travis Smyth, came in hot on the heels of the leaders, each posting a tidy 65 to stand just three back.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe’s Kieran Vincent signed for 65, Spain’s Sergio Garcia posted 66, and Filipino Miguel Tabuena shot 67, leaving them one stroke further behind Herbert and Smyth in the second event of the year on The International Series—Asia’s top-tier run of million-dollar tournaments.
Reed rocketed out of the gate yesterday with a superb 63 and never looked back, collecting seven birdies and a lone bogey to reach 13-under overall.
He finished fourth here last year, while Herbert was third, so both have a little unfinished business going into the weekend.
“I think the biggest motivation is going out and getting in contention on Sundays,” said Reed—who won the Link Hong Kong Open last November.
“You know, I feel like the game has been pretty solid this year. I feel like I’ve been hitting the ball decently, feel like I’ve been hitting a lot of quality putts, just the results aren’t really speaking for it.
The ball’s not going how I want it to, so to go out there these first two days and play the way I did, I feel like that’s just kind of how I’ve been playing.”
He’s also eyeing a slot at The Open this summer—one of three up for grabs here at Royal Portrush, thanks to this event being part of the Open Qualifying Series.
“You know, to finally get the scores out is nice, and hopefully I just go ahead and do the same thing on the weekend,” Reed added.
“Not only will I try to earn one of the three spots in The Open, but you know, hoist the trophy.”
Ortiz, looking every inch the contender who triumphed at the International Series Oman last year, only had one bogey on the day, coming at the fifth hole.
He shrugged that off in style, ultimately posting 10 birdies—seven of which came on the back nine in a flurry of red numbers.
“It’s always good when you make a lot of birdies,” Ortiz said. “I feel like I played solid. I left myself in good spots, I drove the ball pretty well, so it’s nice to take advantage of a good day.”
Herbert recalled how he narrowly missed making the playoff here last year—an extra session that saw Catlin edge Spain’s David Puig at the second additional hole—by a mere two shots. With a 65 today, he’s back in contention for redemption.
“Just played reasonably solid,” Herbert said. “I think I made a few pars where I needed to.
Still feels like there were more shots out there, though, which is promising. Going into the weekend, you know I probably have to shoot another couple of low ones to try and catch Patrick.”
Starting on the 10th, Herbert logged no bogeys across his round. “So yeah, happy to be in the house at 10 under. I think it was kind of the goal for two rounds. So, yeah, lunch will taste nice on the back of that.”
Over in Sergio Garcia’s corner, the Spaniard has roared into Macau riding high on recent success: he captured LIV Golf Hong Kong just two weeks ago at Hong Kong Golf Club, the same site where Reed earned his Link Hong Kong Open title.
When asked about his golden run, which has also propelled his Fireballs GC team to three consecutive victories on the LIV Golf League, Garcia said: “A little bit of everything, I guess.
Obviously, the long game has been good, the short game it’s improved, so it’s a good mix of things there. But, you know, there’s still a lot of things that I need to get better at.”
Local sensation Kelvin Si is revelling in a dream tournament, carding a 67 to sit at seven under in a share of 12th—a credit to his familiarity with his home course.
“It’s my home course, so it’s definitely a big advantage,” Si said. “The conditions were really good today—sunny, with not much wind.
I played this event last year, missed the cut, but it was a good experience. I can use that this week, and I feel much more comfortable than last year because that was my first time playing a professional tournament on this course.”
Catlin, last year’s 59-man, had a relatively subdued 72 in round one, but he bounced back with a 66 to sneak inside the cut line at two under.
If you’re in Macau, there’s no finer place to be for the weekend than International Series Macau presented by Wynn, running March 20–23.
Entry is absolutely free across all four days, but you’ll need tickets—registration is open at: https://www.tixr.com/groups/internationalseriesmacau/events/international-series-macau-presented-by-wynn-129841.
For more on The International Series, visit: www.internationalseries.com.
