Johor Bahru, Malaysia: Malaysia’s Danny Chia continued his good run of form to share the opening round clubhouse lead with compatriot Iylia Jamil on five-under-par 67 at the weather-disrupted PGM Johor Championship on Wednesday.

Local hope Rizal Amin was in third after signing for a 68 while Australia’s Darren Tan, Singapore’s Mardan Mamat and Senroku Isa of Japan shared fourth position on matching 69s at the Johor Golf and Country Club.

The first round of the RM200,000 (approximately US$60,000) event was abandoned at 3.30pm local time due to lightning threat. A total of 66 players will return at 7.30am on Thursday to complete their first rounds, while the second round is scheduled to start at 9.10am.

Chia, who successfully defended his title for a second ADT victory at the PGM Northport Glenmarie Championship a fortnight ago, set the early pace with a flawless round highlighted by five birdies.

“I used to play here a lot in the past but I haven’t been here for a while. The greens are tricky but the roughs are not as thick as it used to be so it’s slightly easier,” said Chia, who finished tied 33rd at the ICTSI Philippine Open on the Asian Tour last week.

Chia, the first Malaysian to win on the Asian Tour in 2002, underwent surgery for a career-threatening shoulder injury last September and is still in the process of recovery.

“My game has been good and I feel my strength is coming back slowly but after this week, I will have to return to my rehabilitation. I’m supposed to go for rehabilitation every day but I haven’t done so for the past three weeks.

“My main priority this year is to recover fully from my shoulder injury so I will take some time off to rest after this week,” explained the 41-year-old Malaysian.

Malaysia’s Iylia also returned with a bogey-free round after taking advantage of his familiarity with the course.

“I have been playing here since I was 14 years old and I finished third in a local event here back in 2011. I’m quite familiar with the course. Everything went well for me so hopefully I can stay consistent throughout the week,” said the 23-year-old, whose best result on the ADT was tied-seventh at the PGM MIDF KLGCC Masters last season.

Rizal, who traded six birdies against a double-bogey, believes that patience is the key to success this week.

“I played really well on my back nine even though I double-bogeyed the 15th. I managed to recover with two straight birdies right after that. It wasn’t easy. The weather was hot in the morning. I just have to stay patient and continue to stick to my own game plan for the next few rounds,” said Rizal.

Working in close partnership with the Professional Golf of Malaysia (PGM) Tour, a total of 12 PGM events will feature on this season’s ADT Schedule, giving Malaysian players a big incentive in chasing for a place on the region’s main Tour.

The ADT, which was launched in 2010 with five tournaments before growing to eight in 2011, 13 in 2012 and a record 16 in the 2013 season, has established itself as a gateway to the Asian Tour.

For more information on the ADT, please visit www.asiandevelopmenttour.com.

Leading first round scores

67 – Danny Chia (MAS), Mohd Iylia JAMIL (MAS)
68 – Rizal AMIN (MAS)
69 – Darren TAN (AUS), Senroku ISA (JPN), Mardan MAMAT (SIN)
70 – Muhd Zafran ABDULLAN (A) (MAS), R. Nachimuthu (MAS), Zaw MOE (MYN)
71 – Naoto NAKANISHI (JPN), TAN Chien Hae (MAS), YE Jian-feng (CHN), Arie IRAWAN (MAS), Mathiam KEYSER (RSA), Craig HINTON (ENG), Yuzo ICHIKAWA (JPN), KHOR Kheng Hwai (MAS).