Marcel Siem opens the DP World Tour season in Johannesburg with a 67, putting himself in striking distance at the Alfred Dunhill Championship.
The Alfred Dunhill Championship marks the second DP World Tour event of the Opening Swing in South Africa and the tour’s first return to Royal Johannesburg since 2017. The prestigious East Course is one of the most renowned layouts on the African continent. Marcel Siem delivered a strong performance in the opening round with a 67 (-5), positioning himself well on the leaderboard. While Eugenio Chacarra and Christiaan Burke led the field with rounds of 63, fellow Germans Marcel Schneider and Nick Bachem stayed in touch with 70s (-2).
DP World Tour: Siem surges on front nine
It took a few holes for Marcel Siem to find his rhythm. Starting on the back nine, he opened with a bogey but quickly settled with a string of steady pars. His momentum began with a birdie on the par-5 18th, which he carried into the front nine. There, he carded three consecutive birdies followed by two more on holes 5 and 8, with clean pars in between. This performance placed him inside the top 15 after day one of the DP World Tour event.
Solid starts for Schneider and Bachem
Two other Germans also had promising starts: Marcel Schneider and Nick Bachem both posted 70s (-2) to sit mid-pack. Schneider played all pars on the front nine, then added birdies on 13 and 18, with a single bogey on 12. Bachem kept a steady pace on the back nine and secured birdies on holes 1 and 6 on the front. Both players remain on track for the weekend cut at the DP World Tour