Bjerregaard hits the front in China

Lucas Bjerregaard moved to the front of the field at the BMW Masters in Shanghai on Friday.
The Dane carded his second consecutive six-under-par 66 at Lake Malaren Golf Club to build a three-shot lead at the top of the leaderboard ahead of first round leader Sergio Garcia and Thongchai Jaidee.
Starting on the back nine, Bjerregaard got off to a laboured start, making a gain on the first hole and a string of pars lead up to his second birdie on the 16th, which was followed by a bogey.
But the world number 178 really got going on the front nine, rolling in no less than five birdies as he surged into the lead.
Bjerregaard has been building slowly in 2015, with four top ten finishes, including a runner-up place at the recent Hong Kong Open.
"It was a great round and I finished off with some good birdies coming in," the 24-year-old told europeantour.com.
"A great birdie there on six, a tough par three today. Nothing much really happened on the first nine, I just played really solid.
"But I thought it was a good bit tougher than yesterday with the wind up. Some of the holes were playing really long. But I made some good putts, made some good par saves as well to keep the round going, so that was nice."
Ian Poulter, Paul Casey and Byeong Hun An are all tied for fourth on eight-under, while Peter Uihlein and Ross Fisher are another stroke behind.
In terms of the Race to Dubai, second in the running Danny Willett notched a 69 to get to three-under while Shane Lowry, in third, slumped to a three-over 75 which leaves him on one-over for the event.
Latest
-
News
Ian Poulter backs Rory McIlroy to bounce back after match play rout
The four-time major champion has made recent changes to his team.
-
News
Rory McIlroy off to losing start at WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play
Ian Poulter claimed a comprehensive victory at Austin Country Club.
-
News
Danny Willett reunited with caddie Jonathan Smart in the Dominican Republic
Willett and Smart split just over a year after their triumph at Augusta National in 2016.
-
News
Matt Fitzpatrick feels like the underdog as he prepares to face Jordan Spieth
The Englishman is the top seed in their group at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.
-
News
Jon Rahm in favour of straight knockout format returning for WGC Match Play
The world number three does not believe players who lose a match should remain in the tournament.
-
News
Rory McIlroy working with Pete Cowen in bid to rediscover form ahead of Masters
McIlroy has previously sought Cowen’s input on an informal basis.
-
News
Justin Harding not feeling any pressure as he chases back-to-back wins in Kenya
The South African will be hoping to add the Kenya Savannah Classic title to the Magical Kenya Open crown he won on Sunday.
-
News
Knee surgery puts Brooks Koepka’s Masters place in doubt
Koepka went under the knife last week after suffering a dislocation and ligament damage.
-
News
Honda Classic champion Matt Jones felt unbeatable after “something clicked”
The 40-year-old Australian admits he was incredibly confident ahead of last week’s event.
-
News
Lee Westwood feeling ‘drained’ but relishing challenge of Honda Classic
The 47-year-old says he is ‘a little bit tired’.