Kathmandu, March 20:

Indra Thapa accumulated 39 points to take lead after the first day of the CMS Cup Golf Championship here at the Royal Nepal Golf Club (RNGC) today.

Thapa, who is an 18 handicap player, scored 20 points on the front nine before adding 19 on the return. Pradeep Bikram Rana, playing with 11 handicap, earned 34 stableford points. He scored 20 on the front nine and 14 on the back.

In the ladies section, Kalyani Moktan scored 29 points to remain on top while Nayana Bista is second at 23. Moktan, a 25-handicap amateur, earned 19 points on the first holes and added just 10 on the back nine. Playing with 31 handicap allowance, Bista scored 13 and 10 in the front and back nine respectively.

Brig Gen Gunja Man Lama is leading the senior section with 32 points on count back after he was tied with Maj Bejoy Moktan. Lama scored 15 on the front and 17 on the back nine, while Moktan earned 17 and 15 respectively.

Gokarna Golf Club amateur Rupak Acharya, who won the amateur section trophy of the CMS Open Golf Championship that concluded on Thursday, took lead in the Guest section with 36 stable ford points. Playing with two handicap, Acharya scored 20 on the front nine and 16 on the back. Sudhir Sharma is second at 31. Lachhim Prasad Gurung is the leader in the closest to the pin award at Hole No 17.

In all, 45 players played their rounds on the Friday and another 66 players will play on Saturday. The two-day event — played under stableford 7/8 handicap format — is organised by the RNGC under the sponsorship of International Society of Medical Studies (ISME) Pvt Ltd.