The 23-year-old made the cut at the 2009 Australian Open the last time he was in the country and is playing in the Lake Macquarie tournament for the first, and possibly last, time.

Perera's father Nandasena Perera is a professional golfer and Mithun plans to follow in his footsteps at the end of the year.

"There are some amateur tournaments back home I want to play this year, but the plan is to turn pro at the end of the year," Perera said.

Perera earned a place in the field for the Australian Open after winning the Asian Pacific Amateur Championship last year.

That victory also got him a game at the Panasonic Open in Japan and gave him a taste of the big time.

"It was great to make the cut at the Australian Open and I really enjoyed my first trip to Australia," Perera, who lives in Colombo, said.

"This is my first time at Belmont and I really like the course."

Perera said he hit some good shots but struggled with his putter in his opening-round 72 and he backed that up with a 71 yesterday.

Another player hoping to follow his father's lead is American 22-year-old Peter Croonquist.

Croonquist also opened his tournament with an even-par 72 and plans to join the professional ranks like his father, Dan Croonquist, who played on the US PGA Tour for seven years during the 1970s.