American player of Indian origin Akshay Bhatia carded 1-under 70 to be tied-29th. Another US player of Indian origin, Sahith Theegala pulled out on the eve of the Championship due to a strained neck.

All three Indian origin players had played the Tour Championship last year and were in the top-30 in the world.

Venezuelan Jhonattan Vegas, who has never finished in the top-20 at a Major, shot 7-under 64, which gave him a two-shot lead in a field that has 98 of the world’s top 100 players.

World No. 1 and defending champion Scottie Scheffler shot 2-under 69, while world No. 2 Rory McIlroy carded 3-over 74 to be placed tied-20th and tied-98th respectively.

Rai opened on the 10th with a birdie and added three more in a row — from the 14th to the 16th — to go four-under after eight holes. He bogeyed the 18th but, on his second nine — the front side of Quail Hollow course –, Rai had one birdie on the seventh and parred the rest.

With a lot of players affected by mud balls and the officials not allowing ‘life-and-clean’, it was a tough day for the top stars. PTI Cor AM AM AM