David GonzalezJayden Schaper and Hennie du Plessis gave the BMW International Open a distinctly South African flavour on day one, carding matching bogey-free rounds of 64 to share the lead at Golfclub München Eichenried in Germany.
It was the sort of opening day that makes a leaderboard look as if someone has accidentally left the scoring settings on friendly mode. Soft greens, sharp wedges and an obliging putter here and there turned Munich into a feast for those brave enough to attack. Schaper and Du Plessis were very much in that mood.
Both men reached eight under par, with countryman JC Ritchie only one further back alongside Australia’s Anthony Quayle, who birdied his final hole from one of the last two groups of the day. If there was a theme to the opening round, it was not exactly subtle: the South Africans arrived early, scored heavily and left everyone else with a rather pointed invitation to keep up.
Schaper Turns Comfort Into Control
Schaper’s position at the top of the BMW International Open leaderboard is no accident. He arrived in Munich sitting fourth on the Race to Dubai Rankings Delivered by DP World, helped by back-to-back victories at the Alfred Dunhill Championship and AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open at the start of the season.
That is not form so much as momentum with its shoes on.
Starting from the tenth, Schaper was placed in a lively three-ball alongside Race to Dubai leader Patrick Reed and the returning Marco Penge. He did not take long to settle. Birdies at the 11th and 12th moved him quickly under par before the short game joined the party.
A chip-in at the 14th gave the round its first little jolt of electricity. Another gain at the 16th was followed by more short-game mischief at the par-three 17th, where he chipped in again to turn in 31.
From there, Schaper kept the round neat, clean and increasingly irritating for anyone trying to catch him. A birdie at the long par-three second moved him to six under, before he made the most of the par-five sixth and ninth to become the first player in the clubhouse at eight under.
Jayden Schaper: I just got off to a nice solid start. I made a nice little eight to ten footer on the first hole for par. I was just trying to play straightforward and I made a nice little birdie and had two really cool chip-ins on my front nine. From those positions, normally you’re just trying to make an up and down, trying to chip inside like six to seven feet, you’re pretty happy with that. But I chipped them in and they were just nice moments in the round and I kind of just kept the momentum from there.
Schaper’s comfort around Golfclub München Eichenried also matters. Players often talk about liking a venue, sometimes because it is true and sometimes because there is a microphone in front of them. In Schaper’s case, the scoring suggested genuine ease rather than polite geography.
Jayden Schaper: I think just coming into the event, I know the course, I’m comfortable with it. I’ve been here a couple of years now. I love the area, love the city, so it’s always a week that I enjoy coming to.
Soft Conditions Open The Door
The course had taken rain earlier in the week, but by Thursday it was playable, receptive and ready to reward accuracy. That combination can be dangerous at elite level. Give DP World Tour players soft greens and decent pace on the surfaces, and they tend not to send thank-you notes. They send 64s.
Schaper was clear that conditions allowed players to be aggressive without turning the round into target practice entirely.
Jayden Schaper: We got into the Pro-Am yesterday. I had a good time out there with the guys I was playing with. It’s just a completely different golf course from Monday. Greens were soft but I was still impressed that we got out yesterday after the amount of rain that we had.
Jayden Schaper: The bunkers were a bit different, but the golf course was kind of soft today. The greens were rolling good. They were a bit soft, so I mean you could attack most of the pins and if you did miss in a couple of the wrong areas, you can kind of land it soft. Of course it was pretty good overall.
That is the key tension for the rest of the week. If the BMW International Open remains soft, the winning score could require something rather muscular. But soft conditions do not automatically mean easy golf. They simply mean the punishment shifts. Miss in the wrong spot and you may still pay. Hit fairways, control the wedges and behave yourself on the greens, and there are birdies to be had.
Du Plessis Joins The Party In Style
Hennie du Plessis matched Schaper’s 64 with a round that gathered pace beautifully. His front nine was patient rather than explosive, featuring birdies at the par-five 11th and 18th, with another gain at the 15th tucked neatly between them.
Then the engine warmed properly.
Back-to-back birdies at the fourth and fifth pushed him closer. An eagle from five feet at the sixth dragged him right into the lead conversation. Another birdie at the ninth completed a five-shot burst across four holes and lifted him alongside Schaper at the summit.
Du Plessis is also shaping what could become his best DP World Tour season so far, having produced a strong run of results on home soil during the International Swing. This opening round in Munich was not merely low; it was controlled, measured and then, at the right moment, ruthless.
Hennie du Plessis: I made quite a nice start. Slow, but very solid. Hit fairways, hit the greens. I was very patient that front nine because I could have gone either way on a few holes.
Hennie du Plessis: On the back nine I started great, hit a couple of great drives. I got lucky with a nice lie in the fairway bunker on three. I managed to hit it on the green, make a good two-putt, and then sort of got going then.
Hennie du Plessis: I hit it close on four, close on five and very close on six. On seven I made a nice little slider. Overall, I was disappointed that I didn’t birdie the last, but you know, it was a good, solid round. I’m very happy with it. If you drive it well, you give yourself a lot of chances on this golf course.
That final sentence may prove to be the tactical note of the week. Golfclub München Eichenried is clearly offering chances, but only to those who drive well enough to earn them. There is generosity in the setup, but not charity.
Ritchie Keeps The South African Theme Going
JC Ritchie ensured the South African presence near the top of the BMW International Open leaderboard was not limited to the leading pair. His seven-under effort left him one shot adrift, alongside Anthony Quayle, and firmly in the early mix.
Ritchie’s day was fuelled by birdies and, more importantly, a putter that finally seemed to have received the memo.
JC Ritchie: I’ll take it. I made lots of birdies and I had a really hot putter, which helps. I’ve been doing a lot of hard work with the putting, so that seems to be coming along nicely. I’m just going to give myself a couple more chances and it will be fine.
He also pointed to the early stretch of Golfclub München Eichenried as a section that can draw blood before players have had time to loosen their shoulders.
JC Ritchie: You’ve got a really good driving hole on the first, a really long iron on the second, a good long par three and then a really strong par four on the third. You don’t really have to do much wrong to start off with one or two bogeys.
JC Ritchie: The game’s been close. I’ve been having lots of good days, lots of good hitting days, not making a lot of putts and then having a good putting day and not hitting it that great.
That is tournament golf in one tidy little sigh. The game is nearly always “close” until, suddenly, it is either in your pocket or disappearing over a fence.
English Quartet In The Chasing Pack
Behind the leaders, the leaderboard has enough British interest to keep the second round lively. Paul Waring, Ross Fisher, Dan Bradbury and Joe Dean all sit at six under par, sharing fifth place with South Africa’s Michael Hollick, American Davis Bryant and Scotland’s Daniel Young.
At two shots back, that group is hardly peering at the leaders through binoculars. One strong Friday morning and the whole thing could tighten considerably.
Still, the opening round belongs to Schaper and Du Plessis. One arrived in Munich already carrying serious Race to Dubai weight; the other is building a campaign that looks increasingly substantial. Together, they have given the BMW International Open a sharp early identity.
The warning to the field is simple enough: if the course stays soft and the South Africans keep driving it in play, Munich may need a bigger leaderboard.
