Seven top first round leaderboard

Eddie Lee took advantage of a long-overdue change in fortune to surge into a share of a seven-way tie for the lead alongside world number three Ernie Els after the first round of the BMW Asian Open in Shanghai.

Lee flourished in the steaming hot conditions at Tomson Shanghai Pudong Golf Club to record an opening round of five-under-par 67, which was matched by England's Simon Wakefield, playing in the same group as Lee, and Els in the afternoon session.

They joined Larry Austin of Australia , French pair Jean Van de Velde and Raphael Jacquelin and Ireland 's Peter Lawrie, all of whom posted the same score during morning play, at the head of the field.

Local favourites Zhang Lian-wei and Liang Wen-chong are the leading mainland Chinese players in equal 12th after rounds of 70, the same score as defending BMW Asian Open champion Miguel Angel Jimenez.

The BMW Asian Open is being joint-sanctioned by the Asian and European Tours for the fourth time and is being played for the second consecutive year at Tomson, on the eastern outskirts of the city.

Lee, yet to make a cut on the Asian Tour in seven attempts in 2005, returned to form in solid fashion, notching a birdie at the first hole and eagle at the ninth, before a back nine of two-under saw him safely in the clubhouse.

However, he was not surprised at his change of luck. Said the Korean-born New Zealander: “I am really, really happy with how I am hitting it. I have been trying to fix my swing since late last year, but I just kept hitting it worse. Three or four weeks ago I just said: ‘That's enough' and went back to my own swing.

“I have hit the ball exceptionally well the last three tournaments, but did not score as well as I would have liked. However, you know a good round is going to come if you just stick at it and today I played very nicely,” he added.

Indeed it was nice for Lee, who burst to prominence when he won the Asian Tour's Maekyung LG Fashion Open as an amateur in 2002. Although there has been just one additional top-10 finish since, a simple game plan is his new recipe for success.

“It has been a frustrating year, because I have been switching my swing. But the last three weeks I just decided this way was the way I was going to play golf for the rest of my life,” said Lee.

Three-time Major winner Els, meanwhile, stormed out in four-under 32, but could only add one more birdie on the back nine. However, that was still enough for the ‘Big Easy' to take home a share of the lead as he bids for the US$1.5 million BMW Asian Open.

Said Els of his day's work in China 's bustling financial capital: “It was very warm out there and that took its toll, but I had a good start and quite a few more chances on the back nine. Overall, I am happy with my first round and it puts me in a good position.”

According to the big South African, the minor adjustments he has been making to his game are paying off. “The ball just feels right coming off the club face and it goes in the right direction. You can't start pushing it too much in the first round, but I am looking forward to the rest of the week now.”

Jeev Milkha Singh, who was in sixth position on both the Asian and Japanese money lists coming into this week, returned a three-under 69 to put himself in a tie for eighth and firmly in contention for the BMW Asian Open title.

Said the Indian: “I rolled the putts well, but just didn't make anything coming in. I am happy, though, and I am hitting the ball much better. I have worked hard on my game this week, so we will see what happens.”

Asian number one Thongchai Jaidee, twice the winner of events joint-sanctioned between Asia and Europe , recorded an opening 73, good for a tie for 65th. Fellow Asian Tour Order of Merit frontrunners Jyoti Randhawa and Thaworn Wiratchant enjoyed mixed fortunes, lying in joint 12th and equal 85th, after rounds of 70 and 74 respectively.

The story of the morning session at the Shunski Kato-designed Tomson layout was the somewhat unheralded foursome of Asian Tour Qualifying School graduate Austin, Van de Velde, Jacquelin and Lawrie.

For Austin , some hard work on the practice range paid dividends. Playing in the first group, which teed off at 6.30 am, the Australian recorded five birdies to see him into a share of the lead.

Austin said: “This is my first year on the Asian Tour and I have really enjoyed it. I have had a couple of good finishes this year so far and a few good chances that I have let slip as well. With the start that I have had this week, hopefully I can continue it.”

Van de Velde, best remembered for his exploits at the 1999 Open Championship, has played sparingly in recent years due to injury. Relying on a sponsor invitation to play this week, Van de Velde more than repaid the faith with his 67.

Another to have a good start was Peter O'Malley, the veteran Australian recording a hole-in-one on the 182-yard par-three eighth hole. Sadly, the BMW X3 3.0i that is up for grabs for an ace this week is on offer on the 17th.

This year sees the fourth edition of the joint-sanctioned BMW Asian Open, which was won by Jimenez last year. Previous winners also include Jarmo Sandelin (2001) and Padraig Harrington (2002), both triumphant at Ta Shee Golf & Country Club in Taipei .

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