Bernhard Langer moved menacingly towards the top of the leaderboard at the European Senior Tour’s Pon Senior Open in his native Germany after an opening score of four under par 68 – shot in the poorest conditions of the day – saw him move to within one stroke of the lead.
The former Masters Champion powered through the cold and damp afternoon conditions at the Winston Golf resort in northern Germany to notch five birdies and just a single dropped shot to get within one stroke of first round leaders Ross Drummond and Terry Price.
“It was a solid round and a good score because the conditions were tough out there in the wind and the rain,” said Langer.
“I started really well and was two under through three but then had a terrible shot on the fourth and made a few bad swings after that. Thankfully I got it back and made a couple of good birdies on the back nine to finish with a good score.
“The score could have probably been a few strokes better because I created a few really good other chances on the back nine but just couldn’t hole the putts.
“But I am happy with the position – one stroke is nothing when you consider we have 36 holes to go here. That is a lot of golf so even if I was more than one behind I would still be feeling confident about my chances to win.”
