Royal Melbourne always asks the same question on day one: who can keep their ball in the correct places long enough to let patience and touch do the scoring? After Thursday’s opening round, the amateurs got a full Sandbelt education — and one of them put himself right on the first-page mix.
Amateur Leaderboard (After Round 1) Pos.PlayerR1 ScoreTo Par1Harry Takis70-12Jye Halls71E3Kaito Sato72+14Ollie Marsh73+25Blake Phillips76+56Fifa Laopakdee79+8What We Saw Thursday
Takis delivered the day’s standout amateur round, signing for a 1-under 70 to sit inside the top 30 overall. On a track where the wrong quadrant can turn a routine approach into a defensive two-putt, he played a disciplined brand of golf: fairways early, conservative lines into firm greens, and enough made putts to reward the patience. It’s the kind of opening score that keeps an amateur in the conversation at Royal Melbourne.
Halls followed with a steady even-par 71, a score that looks better the longer the week goes. He avoided the big miss and kept himself out of the short-sided trouble that bites so many first-timers here. One back of Halls, Sato posted 72 and stayed in the pack despite a few early adjustments to the pace and movement on these greens.
Further down, Marsh and Phillips absorbed the classic Sandbelt lesson: small errors get magnified quickly. Still, both are close enough to climb with a clean Friday. Laopakdee had the toughest opener at 79, but Royal Melbourne can flip fast — a single round of sharper angles and better speed control can change the entire week.
Looking Ahead
With three rounds left, the amateur race is wide open. If conditions stay firm and breezy, the advantage goes to the players who accept par as a good score and stay committed to center-green targets. Takis has put himself in the best early position, but Halls and Sato are right there with plenty of runway. We’ll update this tracker after Round 2.
