Bogey free Kochhar in top-10 at International Series Japan; Hongtaek Kim leads after opening round

Kochhar's start today was as sedate as they come. Teeing off from the 10th, he made nine consecutive pars through his first nine holes - his round coming to life after the turn, with four birdies in the 1st, 4th, 6th and 8th holes, according to a press release.

Meanwhile, Jeev Milkha Singh (T-85) and Gaganjeet Bhullar (T-103) shot rounds of 1-over 72 and 2-over 73, respectively, and have a bit of work to do on Friday.

Korea's Kim leads from compatriot Younghan Song and Thailand's Poom Saksansin, who both recorded 65s here at Caledonian Golf Club, in what is the opening event of the season on The International Series.

The stakes are high with players trying to get points on the board early on The International Series Rankings, which sees the leading players at the end of the season earns place on the LIV Golf League.

Kim, who started on 10, made the most of the easier conditions in the afternoon, registering an eagle, six birdies and one bogey.

"The conditions were a bit better in the afternoon, which helped," he said.

"Overall, I played pretty solid and took advantage of all the opportunities out there."

He made his eagle on the par-five sixth before closing his round with more brilliance by making birdies on eight and nine.

Added the 32-year-old: "I think it was my driving that was great today. I was able to hit a lot of fairways, which set up good chances to hit greens in regulation. That really helped me keep things consistent.

"It could be tougher with the weather in the morning tomorrow, so the key will be to stay patient and keep hitting fairways. Positioning off the tee will be really important again."

He has won once before on the Asian Tour, at the GS Caltex Maekyung Open in 2024 - when he beat Thailand's Chonlatit Chuenboonngam in a sudden-death play-off.

He is also a four-time champion on the Korean PGA Tour, his most recent being last year's Busan Open.

However, he is arguably best known for being a star on the golf simulator circuit on Korea's GTour, which has earned him the nickname is King of the Screen. He claimed multiple titles on the hugely popular franchise.

Song already has the privilege of playing on the LIV Golf League, having joined the Korean Golf Club team this year. "I'm really enjoying it," he said about the League.

"It's a new environment, and everything feels different. The level of competition is very high, with many top-ranked players, so it's been a great learning experience."

He finished second here last year, just missing out on his second Asian Tour title. It was back in 2016 that he claimed the Singapore Open, defeating then world number one Jordan Spieth from the United States.

"I wasn't playing particularly well coming in, but we had good weather today, which helped. I also have good memories on this course, so I just tried to focus on each shot, and that allowed me to play well," he added.

He was bogey-free today with three birdies on each half.

Poom's presence on the leaderboard always represents a threat. He is a four-time winner on the Asian Tour, and despite his lack of length off the tee, he is a ferocious competitor.

Said the Thai: "I was a bit lucky to play in the afternoon with better conditions. My driving was good, and my putting was solid as well. There was a little bit of rain early on, but overall, the conditions were manageable.

"I'll spend a bit more time on the putting later to make sure everything stays sharp. Just keep working and stay consistent.

American John Catlin, the 2024 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion, is next best placed following a 66, along with China's Lin Yuxin, winner of this season's Asian Tour Qualifying School, Japan's Tatsunori Shogenji, Wang Wei-hsuan from Chinese-Taipei and Korean Yongjun Bae.

Wooyoung Cho from Korea, the current leader of the Asian Tour Order of Merit, came in with a disappointing 76. (ANI)