Xu Qin, the 27-year-old Ian Poulter 'dress-alike', and in-form Zhou Jun both shot three-under-par 69 to share the first-round lead in the RMB1 million Omega Championship yesterday, the Omega China Tour's season-ending event at the Beijing Longxi Hotspring Golf Club.
Hong Kong-based Nick Redfern and Zhou Xunshu, who both had their wives caddying for them, each carded 70 to lie joint-third with Wu Ligui.
Chinese Taipei star Hsu Mong-nan, Hong Kong's Wong Woon-man and Chen Xiaoma, last year's Most Improved Player, shot 71 to share sixth place.
Tour heavyweights Liao Guiming, the current Omega Order of Merit leader, Li Chao, the two-time money-list winner, and Chinese Taipei's Chan Yih-shin were among a large group on 72.
Xu, who proudly admits that he models his clothes and hairstyle on Poulter, enjoyed a bogey-free round, picking up three birdies on the second nine to top the leaderboard on the Omega China Tour for the first time.
"If I dress well, I feel good. Recently I've been paying even more attention to Ian Poulter. I always check what he's wearing, from his trousers to his shirts. My hair is also high like his," said Xu, who was disqualified from the season-opener in Guangzhou after accidentally missing his tee-time.
"Today, I drove well and my irons were good, especially on the second nine. If you can cope with these greens, which are so large and sloping, you can score well. I'd love to win this week because I've never won on the Omega China Tour."
Zhou Jun was arguably the happiest player of all after continuing his good form from last month's Tianjin Championship, where his fourth-place finish was his best ever on the circuit.
"Today was my first-ever bogey-free round! I'm so happy about that," beamed the Tianjin-born 24-year-old, who enjoyed playing with former China National Team colleague Wu Kangchun.
"My irons were particularly good, so I just hope I can continue like this in the second round."
The experienced Redfern appeared the most confident of all the front-runners, having been five-under after his 11th hole before bogeying three of his last seven.
"I'm playing well, I'm confident and I'm here to win. This is the flagship event of the Omega China Tour, so this will be the biggest win of the year for the champion," said Redfern, whose wife Yvette, from Hong Kong, has caddied for him throughout his rookie season on the circuit.
"I also know that if I win I could even finish third on the Omega Order of Merit," the Englishman added, referring to the increased RMB187,500 winner's cheque due to the tournament's record purse.
Zhou Xunshu's wife was caddying for him for the first time this season and she had the desired effect as the ex-military police officer and former golf course security guard rediscovered the form that led to two top-10 finishes earlier in the season.
The season-ending Omega Championship boasts the highest prize money on the eight-event Omega China Tour and concludes the race for the Omega Order of Merit.
(China Daily October 10, 2008)
