Order of Merit leader Charley Hull makes confident start to Dubai Ladies Masters

Charley Hull put herself firmly on course for a place in the record books after she made an excellent start to the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters at the Emirates.

The English teenager recovered from an uncertain start to card a five-under 67 to end the day just one stroke behind leaders Carin Koch and Shanshan Feng.

Hull will be crowned as the youngest player in history to win the Ladies European Tour Order of Merit title unless nearest challenger Gwladys Nocera can pull off something special over the next three rounds.

Nocera needs a top-four finish and a big slip from Hull if she is to have any chance of denying the 18-year-old a historic milestone, although the French veteran did keep her hopes alive with a creditable 69.

Hull started at the 10th and was one over after six holes before finding a rich vein of form, reeling off three straight birdies and adding three more at the second, fourth and fifth holes before parring safely in.

Playing partner Nocera opened with a bogey-six, but she also hit the birdie trail as she picked up four shots in five holes to close out the back nine and pile the pressure on Hull.

Nocera matched Hull's birdie at the fourth, but she gave the shot straight back at the next and parred in to remain at three under - good enough for a share of 10th place.

Ladies European Tour Golf

But with most of the attention centred on the battle between Hull and Nocera, Koch rolled back the years to set the early clubhouse target following a remarkable mid-round birdie blitz.

The 43-year-old Swede, who will skipper Europe at the Solheim Cup next September, also started at the 10th and birdied two of her first four holes before capping a back-nine 32 with three in a row.

Koch made her first error of the day at the first but she responded with another run of three consecutive birdies, although she cost herself the outright lead with her second bogey at the ninth.

World No 5 Feng, the highest ranked player in the field, was the only player to match Koch's early 66 after racing out of the blocks with four birdies over the first six holes.

The Chinese ace offset another birdie at 10 with a bogey at 11, but she finished strongly with further birdies at the 16th and 18th to earn a share of the lead.

“I didn’t have any pressure today," said Feng, the 2012 champion. “I think we had so many birdie chances out there and I made seven, which is pretty good. I think my putting was really working, but I can maybe work a little harder on my driving.

“This year coming in, I set my goal - I said maybe top three. And I would say six‑under is a pretty good start.”

Hull is tied for third with Welsh golfer Becky Brewerton, who kept a bogey off her card in her 67, while South African Lee-Anne Pace and South Korean amateur Lee Soyoung are also one off the pace.

Defending champion Pornanong Phatlum opened with a solid four-birdie 68, while Tiger Woods' niece Cheyenne recovered from an opening bogey with three birdies in a two-under 70.

Dame Laura Davies endured a difficult first day at she struggled to two over after 16 holes, but she birdied 17 and 18 to salvage a 72.

Watch the second round from Dubai live on Sky Sports 4 - your home of golf. Coverage begins at 9:30am on Friday.