Van de Velde shares course record after HKPGA first round

Frenchman Jean van de Velde overcame jetlag and a lack of practice to share the first-round lead at the Ageas Hong Kong PGA Championship after firing a course-record 65 on an incident-packed day at Clearwater Bay Golf Club.

Van de Velde, best known for his final-hole collapse when leading the 1999 Open Championship at Carnoustie, recorded nine birdies over the cliff-top layout before bogeying the final two holes in his five-under-par effort, a score matched by Guido van der Valk of the Netherlands.

Seventeen-year-old amateur Liu Lok-tin, who won the Hong Kong Amateur Open and Close titles last year, leads the local challengers after a stellar 66.

'It was good out there, I had a lot of fun,' said 44-year-old Van de Velde, who arrived in Hong Kong on Monday night after an 11-hour flight from Europe. 'The conditions were very mild, which explains the scoring but I'm happy despite my finish. I gave myself plenty of chances.'

Playing in only his ninth round of the year, Van de Velde, who is looking for his first win since the 2006 Madeira Islands Open, bogeyed the tough par-three opening hole but had a hot putter to thank for his birdie blitz.

'I played well but to be honest I have very few expectations,' said Van de Velde (pictured), who became the first Frenchman to play in the Ryder Cup when he made the European side 12 years ago at Brookline Country Club. 'My hope for the next two rounds is to carry on enjoying myself and see where that gets me. If I can keep playing like that I will be close to the top of the leaderboard.'