Liang, Sterne shine at Fanling

Liang: joint leader

First round leaderboard:
(GB & Ire unless stated)
L Wen-chong (Chn) -6
R Sterne (SA) -6
L Wen-Tang (Tai) -5
F Minoza (Phi) -5

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Liang Wen-chong of China and South African Richard Sterne share the lead after the first round of the Hong Kong Open after carding opening 64s.

The duo both stand on six-under-par after day one in Fanling, a stroke clear of Frankie Minoza of the Philippines and Wen-Tang Lin of Taiwan.

Englishman Oliver Wilson, runner-up in the HSBC Champions event earlier in the month, is part of a four-man group in a tie for fifth on four-under.

Colin Montgomerie and John Daly both shot rounds of 68 to make encouraging starts at the Hong Kong Golf Club, while Nick Faldo finished on two-over after his return to action.

But it was Liang - bidding to become the first Asian winner of the tournament in a decade - who set the clubhouse target before being reeled in by Sterne later in the day.

Things could have been even better for the Chinese player who made seven birdies and just a single bogey - and that coming at the ninth, his final hole.

Liang had in fact reached the green at the par-four ninth in two, but contrived to three-putt to take a little off the gloss of his impressive round.

"My performance today was good but there are still three days left," he stated afterwards.

"My putting feels good and I have been very patient in taking every hole step by step."

Explosive start

Sterne made an explosive start to his round with four birdies in his first six holes to storm up the leaderboard.

However, after picking up strokes at two, three four and six, the 27-year-old promptly bogeyed eight and nine to stand two-under at the turn, but four more birdies followed on the back nine (10, 11, 13 and 17) as he grabbed himself a share of the lead alongside Liang.

"I had a pretty good start and I just kept going," said Sterne whose last European Tour win came at the 2008 Joburg Open.

"From the Masters on I have really struggled but I am still working on a few things. I am not all that comfortable, there are a couple of good things here and there but I have just been very erratic to be honest."

For his part, Wilson mixed seven birdies, including one at the last, with three bogeys and remains hopeful of finally breaking his European Tour duck this week having amassed now fewer than eight runner-up finishes.

"It was a pleasant round," said the 28-year-old Ryder Cupper who shares fifth with Thai Chawalit Plaphol, Wang Ter-chang of Chinese Taipei and Italian Francesco Molinari.

"I am pleased with the finish and if I can stay up there all week it will be nice to be in contention again."

Faldo falls back

Faldo, playing his first European Tour event in over a year, is one of six major winners competing in Hong Kong and made a highly promising start to his round as he bounced back from a bogey at the first to move to two-under with three consecutive birdies.

But that was as good as things got for the 51-year-old as he slipped back down the leaderboard after a double-bogey five at the eighth and two more late bogeys on his back nine.

Reigning champion Miguel Angel Jimenez started his defence with a disappointing 71 and finds himself alongside the likes of Michael Campbell, Paul McGinley, Graeme McDowell, Rory Sabbatini and winner of last week's Singapore Open, Jeev Milkha Singh, at one-over-par.

Meanwhile, England's Simon Griffiths walked off with a $24,000 solid gold bar for his hole-in-one on the par-three 12th on route to a level-par round of 70.