Hero Women’s Indian Open: Vani Kapoor tops leaderboard after first round
Vani Kapoor made full use of her home advantage and years of experience to top the leaderboard with an impressive five-under 67 after the first round of the Hero Women’s Indian Open on Thursday.
The 31-year-old, who practises at the DLF Golf and Country Club when not competing, played steadily with hardly a wrong stroke, raking up birdies, and dropping just a shot on the second hole to lead a field that struggled on softer greens and slower fairways.
Vani, who leads the WGAI Order of Merit with four titles this year, was followed a stroke behind by 16-year-old amateur Zara Anand and Singapore’s Shannon Tan. Tan, second on the LET Order of Merit and runner-up last year, took the first step to ascending to the top with a productive front nine.
With most golfers struggling to control the ball and keep it in play, only 16 of the 109 in action managed to make par. Among those who had a tough outing on the course was defending champion Liz Young, who finished with a 77, with double bogeys on the 10th and 2nd holes and dropped shots on four more.
Former champion Chamille Chevalier of France was a further shot behind, while Mimi Rhodes, hoping to cement her top position on the tour, shot four-over to finish the day tied 56th.
Leading scores
67: Vani Kapoor; 68: Zara Anand, Shannon Tan (Sgp), Verena Gimmy (Ger); 69: Alice Hewson (Eng); 70: Durga Nittur, Romy Meekers (Ned), Hitaashee Bakshi, Sara Kouskova (Cze), Alessia Nobilio (Ita); 71: Chiara Tamburlini (Sui), Sarah Schober (Aut), Kelsey Bennett (Aus), Lisa Pettersson (Swe), Anna Zanusso (Ita), Agathe Sauzon (Fra).; 72: Trichat Cheenglab (Tha), Luna Sobron Galmes (Esp), Maddison Hinson-Tolchard (Aus), Klara Davidson Spilkova (Cze), Eleanor Givens (Eng), Pranavi Urs, Meghan MacLaren (Eng).
Published on Oct 09, 2025