Hokkaido: Jeev Milkha Singh kicked off his campaign in the Nagashima Shigeo Invitational Sega Sammy Cup with a flawless five-under 67 to lie tied fourth in the Japan Tour event.

The 10th tee starter snapped his string of six par shots with back-to-back birdies on the seventh and eighth holes to take the turn at two-under.

On resumption, he birdied the 13th, 15th and 18th holes to return a bogey-free card that kept him firmly in the hunt, just two shots behind opening round leaders Koumiei Oda and Jun Kikuchi.

Jeev Milkha Singh had squandered a chance to qualify for the British Open, finishing tied ninth in the $5.92 million Barclays Scottish Open. The Indian pro needed to finish among the top-five. (PTI)