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| OneAsia |
Darren Clarke signed for a level par 72 on Thursday at the Nanshan China Masters after two bogeys on either side of the turn levelled the birdies on holes 3 and 13 to finish four shots off the lead.
But the 2011 Open Champion was very impressed with the leaders.
"They've obviously played well and rolled the ball well," the Northern Irishman said. "I was surprised coming up the last to see those scores. That's a great effort. Fair play to them.
"It was tricky out there today … the wind was pumping on a few holes. Some of the par fours played exceptionally long due to the wind and there's not much run out there, so I'm pretty pleased with level par."
American rookie Eric Mina, winner of OneAsia's California Q-School in January, fired a four-under-par 68 on Thursday to grab a one-shot lead at U.S. $1 million tournament.
Play was suspended because of bad light with 14 golfers still to finish, but strong winds around the links-style Montgomerie Course at Nanshan International Golf Club played havoc with the scoring and only 14 players were under par.
Brazil's Lucas Lee, New Zealander Gareth Paddison and U.S.-based Korean Ted Oh shared second place after shooting 69, while Major winner Charl Schwartzel ended on 71.
"I'm really happy. I controlled the ball very well," said Mina, who romped to a five-stroke victory at Q-School in January after turning professional just six months earlier.
That win gave him a start in all OneAsia's events, but the 25-year-old -- who had never previously traveled outside the United States -- struggled to find his feet and he has missed every cut so far.
"The first four tournaments were just a learning experience for me," said Mina, whose mother hails from the Philippines and father is an American-born Filipino.
"The season break motivated me to work harder. I was kind of down, so I took a little break and was able to get my game back. I feel my game is in a lot better shape now than what it was in March. I just wasn't experienced, but I had a really good three months with my coach."
The only blemish on Mina's scorecard was a double-bogey on the 16th -- he played the course back-to-front -- but he more than made up for it with six birdies, including one made with a monster 60-foot putt on the sixth.
"This is going to be a learn-on-the-job experience. I'm really excited for the next few days," he said.
Lee, 26, a graduate of OneAsia's 2012 Q-School, also credited a hot putter for his excellent round.
"I've been playing pretty decent all summer. Nothing too crazy, but nothing too bad," he said of a recent stint on the Canada Tour with a best finish of second.
"I was really excited to be coming back to Asia and play these next few tournaments."
Paddison too has been happy with his form despite missing the cut a fortnight ago at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland.
"I played really good … lots of really good iron shots," the left-hander said.
"I had numerous chances out there and it could have been a few better. Holing the putts when it mattered was also a key."
Defending champion Liang Wenchong shot a 74 while Kim Bi-o, winner of the inaugural Nanshan China Masters in 2011 and last year's Order of Merit title, was a shot further back.
The leading Chinese player is Li Haotong, who has a share of fifth place after going two under for the day.
Darren Clarke was paired with local youngster Liu Yanwei, who signed for a first round 82.
"He's obviously got talent, but he didn't quite have control of his ball flight the way he would have liked. If you lose it in that wind you're going to end up in places you don't want to be. But overall he's obviously got a bit of game but a little bit more work required.
"I think my first Irish Open might have been when I was 16 so probably the same thing -- but I was probably drinking a bit more (laughs) and also playing rugby. Probably a little different in that regard."
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