Port Louis, Dec. 20 -- Shubhankar Sharma endured a late stumble on a difficult scoring day at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open, dropping three shots over two holes towards the finish to shoot two-over-par in the opening round at the challenging La Reserve Links.

Fresh from regaining his DP World Tour card with a runner-up finish at the Qualifying School, Sharma showed resilience in tricky, rainy and windy conditions for much of the day. He was one under through 13 holes before a bogey followed by a double bogey -- the latter coming at the par-4 16th, where he needed two attempts to escape the rough -- derailed his momentum. Sharma signed for a 74 to sit tied 71st.

The Indian had three birdies and three bogeys, all on par-5s, but the late...