Rianne Malixi endured a roller-coaster finish to shoot a three-under 70 and tie two others at second, just two strokes behind Nika Ito at the start of the Australian Master of the Amateurs Championship at the Southern Golf Club in Braeside City in Melbourne on Tuesday, Jan. 9.

Malixi birdied No. 5 then matched flightmate Ito’s eagle on the reachable par-5 No. 10 to go three-under. But she went on a birdie-bogey-par-birdie-bogey windup to post a pair of 35s at the par-73 course in a tie with Ng Jing Xuen of Malaysia and Korean Seryeong Cho.

Ito went on an attack mode early, hitting back-to-back birdies from No. 4 then recovering from a mishap on the par-5 No. 7 with another pair of birdies. She then eagled the 444-yard No. 10 to stay behind India’s Avani Prashanth at five-under.
The Japanese failed to get up-and-down on the par-3 12th but snapped a run of pars with another birdie on the last long hole (No. 17) to string a 33-35 card and open a two-shot cushion over three rivals in the 72-hole championship.

Despite her shaky finish, Malixi’s performance served as an inspiring start, especially as the ICTSI-backed rising star is also set to see action in next week’s adidas Australia Amateur in Victoria and in the Asia Pacific Women’s Amateur Championship in Thailand early next month.

Prashanth, who won the individual crown in the Queen Sirikit Cup at Manila Southwoods last year, bucked a bogey start with a wave of birdies – seven – including four straight from No. 9. But she lost her touch and rhythm at the finish, double-bogeying No. 14 and yielding strokes on Nos. 15 and 17 to end up with a 71.

Other two-under par scorers were Ping Hua Hsieh of Taiwan, locals Hanna Reeves and Lion Higo, Canada’s Ashley Chow and Kiwi Eunseo Choi.

Four others posted 72s and six matched pars, setting up what could be a wild, furious battle in the next three days of the annual championship won by Japanese Yuna Araki last year and which drew 71 players from all over.