Golf:Ireland's Damien McGrane is just two shots behind leader Matthew Baldwin (England) following the first round of the Volvo China Open at Binhai Lake Golf Club in Tianjin. McGrane, a former winner of the tournament, shot a five under par, 67 and lies in eighth place.

Baldwin (65) is one shot clear of a group of six players. It was also a good day for Peter Lawrie who managed three under regulation figures, 69 (tied 28th), Shane Lowry and Gareth Maybin, both 71 (tied 62nd) but less so for Michael Hoey, who will need to shoot a sub par round tomorrow after signing for a two over, 74.

The 26 year old Baldwin managed a bogey-free round to lead by one from Joost Luiten, Scott Strange, Jean-Baptiste Gonnet, Fredrik Andersson-Hed and fellow Englishman Gary Boyd. He admitted: “I was very good today so I am happy with that.

“My caddie and I set out this morning with a game play of trying to make 18 pars and take our chances when they came, and it turned out to be one of those days where there were a lot of chances and I managed to take a few of them.”

China’s Guan Tian-lang made history when he teed-off this morning to become the youngest ever player on the European Tour at the age of 13 years and 173 days.

Guan, who beat the record of compatriot Lo Shik-kai set at the 2003 Hong Kong Open, secured a place in the field after finishing fourth in a qualifying event. His debut was proving taxing, however, with two bogeys and one double bogey over his first five holes leaving him four over par and second-last on the leaderboard. However he recovered his composure and shot a respectable 77 given his start to the round.