Rabi Khadka topped the leaderboard at the end of Day 1 of the Surya Nepal Premier Golf Championship at par-72 Gokarna Golf Club in Kathmandu on Monday. Khadka holds a one-stroke lead over defending champion Subash Tamang.

Khadka carded a 5-under 67 in the first round, while Tamang carded a 4-under 68 in his first tournament of the season.

Khadka was hot on the front nine, firing a 4-under 32 with four consecutive birdies on the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth holes. He played 1-under 35 on the back nine after dropping a shot on the 13th hole against the 12th and 17th holes.

Meanwhile, Tamang took the turn at 1-over 37, and bounced back strongly with 5-under 31 on the back nine. He carded a birdie on the sixth hole against bogeys on the fifth and seventh holes. He carded birdies on the 10th, 12th and 16th holes, and sank an eagle on the 15th hole.

Similarly, Nepal’s No. 1 pro, Bhuvan Nagarkoti, and Dhana Bahadur Thapa tied for third at 3-under 69 along with amateurs Nim Dorji Tamang and Rahul Biswakarma.

Nagarkoti, Thapa and Bhutanese amateur golfer Nim Dorji all carded 3-under 33 on the front nine and played even-par 36 on the back nine. Nepal national golf team member Biswakarma took the turn at 1-under 35, and carded 2-under 34 on the back nine.

Niraj Tamang and Bishnu Prasad Sharma followed at 2-under 70, while veteran pro Deepak Magar, Ram Krishna Shrestha and amateur Wangchen Dhondup tied at 1-under 71.

In the amateur section, Nim Dorji and Biswakarma are tied for the lead at 3-under 69. Nim Dorji sank two eagles on the third and seventh holes and carded three birdies, while Biswakarma faced two bogeys against five birdies.

Wangchen, who faced a quadruple bogey nine on the par-5 seventh hole but recovered with a total of six birdies, is third at 1-under 71.

Four others, pros Shivaram Poudel and Dinesh Prajapati along with amateurs Tashi Tsering and Sadbhav Acharya, are at even-par 72.

A total of 37 pros and 18 amateur golfers are taking part in the 72-hole tournament. The cut will be applied after 36 holes, with the top 21 pros and ties, along with amateurs who make the cut, advancing to the final two rounds.

The championship, the biggest of the season in terms of prize money, carries a purse of Rs1.6 million. It is the eighth and final event of the Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2024-25 season.