The moment Gaganjeet Bhullar landed in this coastal city and walked around the East Point Golf Course, with its swaying palm trees and verdant hills, he was reminded of Damai Golf & Country Club in Sarawak, Malaysia. It was one of a kind in India, he felt, and immediately fell in love with the course.

Making his debut here, Bhullar carded a three-under 69 to share the lead with Deepak Yadav, who had played the course twice before, Ravi Kumar and Kanav Chauhan, on the opening day of the Green Fuels Maritime Invitational 2026, part of the AM Green Indian Golf Premier League Tour.

Starting on the fourth, Bhullar, the winner of 11 Asian Tour and five IGPL titles, made five successive pars before his first birdie on the ninth. After parring the next five, he picked up three consecutive birdies from the 15th before dropping a shot on the 18th, his 15th hole, to finish with a 69.

Deepak had a bogey-free round, while Ravi birdied the seventh, 18th, first and fourth holes with the only blip coming on the par-three 16th. After an even par on the front nine, Chauhan fired three birdies in a row from the 15th hole to go on top.

“The course looked easy but was tough to play. The greens were not that receptive. No matter how much it rains, the base is firm, making it tough to hit the ball close to the flag. Another difficulty was that the ball was picking up mud,” said Bhullar.

(The writer is in Visakhapatnam at the invitation of Indian Golf Premier League)