Romain Langasque. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
Thursday marked an exciting start to the 2024 Volvo China Open as the first round was played at Hidden Grace Golf Club in Shenzhen. The 156-player field took advantage of favorable conditions and posted impressive scores throughout the morning and afternoon rounds. Despite the forecast rain, the weather cooperated all day, creating an enjoyable and exciting environment for both players and fans alike.
The field took on the course with confidence, as 92 players finished the day under par. Romain Langasque and Sebastian Söderberg led the field, sharing the lead with scores of nine under par. Local favorite Li Haotong scored eight under, solely securing the third position. Julien Guerrier, Guido Migliozzi and Gordan Brixi tied for fourth place with scores of seven under par.
In the morning round, France's Romain Langasque quickly emerged as the frontrunner. He delivered a remarkable performance, shooting nine under par including a stretch of seven birdies in a row. Langasque, having previously competed at Hidden Grace, leveraged his familiarity with the course to boost his confidence. Reflecting on his past experience, he shared, "Last time we played here, I finished fifth, so I do have a positive history with this course. I appreciate how it requires a certain style of play. To be honest, I didn't expect to shoot nine-under during the practice round, but my iron game was on point today. I created many opportunities and my putting was also working well."
Li Haotong. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
Hometown hero Li Haotong also finished the morning round strong with an impressive under par, closing out the round with three straight birdies. "I hit a lot of good balls today, and my putting was solid. It was quite a surprise to find that after so much rain, the greens were still fast and in good condition, which made me very happy."
Strong fan support bolstered Li's performance throughout the round. Li appreciated the enthusiasm, sharing, "I'm really pleased. Despite my round starting early at 7:20 this morning, many fans were already following me from the third and fourth holes onwards. I'm deeply grateful for their support and hope to reciprocate by performing well throughout the weekend."
Li looks forward to the next rounds, hoping to build on Thursday's success while keeping his approach consistent. He said, "I think it's about maintaining a good attitude and doing the homework I do every day. There won't be much change, and I'll strive to play well in the next few rounds."
Sebastian Söderberg. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
Sebastian Söderberg, having secured back-to-back second-place finishes in the last two weeks, maintained this momentum throughout the afternoon round. He credited this recent run of success to his focus on each shot. This concentration particularly helped him out in the final hole, where he was able to recover from a poor lie to save par and finish the day bogey-free. Reflecting on the end of Thursday's round and his attitude going into tomorrow, he said, "Being bogey-free is always a good feeling, but my attitude going into tomorrow would have been the same regardless. If anything, having a rough patch would probably light a fire under me. Overall, I'm happy with my game and the course so far. Good rounds definitely help with confidence. Despite some bad shots, I can shake it off and hit a good one next. Keeping this momentum has been helpful for me."
