Thriston Lawrence bogeyed the 17th hole on Thursday, but his seven birdies before that single stumble put him in a share of third after the first round of the DP World Tour Championship on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai.
His six-under-par had him level with Rory McIlroy and Andy Sullivan, two shots off the pace set by American Michael Kim. Kim had a brilliant bogey-free 64 to lead by one from Tommy Fleetwood.
Jayden Schaper opened with a three-under 69 for a share of 18th, while Jacques Kruyswijk had a one-under 71 for a share of 32nd. Shaun Norris had a two-over 74 and was in a share of 46th in the 52-man field.
Transcript of Lawrence’s post-round interview:
Q: 66, your first round here at the DP World Tour Championship. What do you think of your performance?
THRISTON LAWRENCE: I think I’m in a good spot. I started nicely on this golf course. I think if you can shoot six-under every day, you have a very good chance of winning. So it’s a great start, and I’ll stick to the plan and be aggressive.
Q: Do you feel like you need to get out of the gate quickly? It’s a long, tough course, as well?
THRISTON LAWRENCE: Yeah, I believe so. Obviously I’m going to play a little later tomorrow. It does get trickier in the afternoon, especially the back nine. The wind picks up normally. It was important for me to get out of the gate, like you said.
Golf is a funny game. You can shoot good scores in tougher conditions, as well. Just got to stick to the game plan and be committed on every shot.
Q: You had an incredible season last year, earned a card on the PGA Tour. Feels like you had a much slower season this year, and the victory in Switzerland, feels like that’s what you needed to kick start everything?
THRISTON LAWRENCE: Yeah, if you look at the results, it’s been a terrible year but golfing-wise I’ve been playing really well. The golf hasn’t changed. I feel like that every year I get better and I learn more.
Obviously the results didn’t show that but I know my game is there every week, and like I say, golf is a funny game. It’s not always going to be a Tiger or a Scottie. I’ve just got to keep doing what I’m doing. I know I’m every bit good enough.
Q: Players tell us the hard times are where they learn the most. Moving to America is a lot of adapting to culture and courses. Have you learned a lot from the past year?
THRISTON LAWRENCE: I think it’s pretty much the same on every other tour. It’s new golf courses. I think for me, it’s probably the closest I’ve got to the feeling of being at home. Golf is pretty much the same, language is the same every week, lifestyle is the same. The only thing for me was the golf courses. Struggled on the greens. It’s tough when you have to learn everything from scratch but if I get a chance next year, it will be a different story.
Q: Share your thoughts about your friend and fellow countryman, Zander Lombard, winning Q-School by 15 strokes?
THRISTON LAWRENCE: I’m so happy for him. He went through that knee injury, and he’s been so close to winning a lot of golf tournaments, and I feel like whether it’s Q-School or Sunshine Tour event or Big Easy event or whatever event it is, if you win, you know you’re playing well.
I’m just so happy for him that he got that chance again for next year. I’m sure he’s in a good spot, and he will definitely take that and make the most of it.
