Suzhou, China, Friday 28th October 2011: Becky Brewerton secured a one-shot lead after the first round of the Suzhou Taihu Ladies Open in China.

The 28-year-old from Wales opened with a five under par 67 at Suzhou Taihu International Golf Club near Shanghai to edge one stroke ahead of six other players including the world number one Yani Tseng.

Brewerton described how she had learned from 22-year-old Tseng, the youngest player in history to have won five majors.  

“I saw a quote that Yani had given yesterday about even now, after everything she has done, she just takes one shot at a time and doesn’t think about the score and that’s what I tried to do today.

“Listening to her quotes and for her to say she doesn’t think about her score, she just tries to do her best on every shot, you just think, yeah, that’s definitely the attitude and today was probably the first time ever that I’ve managed to actually forget my score,” Brewerton said.

Despite firing six birdies and just one bogey on a mild and relatively still day, Brewerton said that she would not feel safe with Tseng a stroke behind on the leader board.

“It wouldn’t matter how far ahead you were, you wouldn’t feel safe,” said the two-time LET champion from Abergele, who now lives in Royal Wootton Basset.

“You know with Yani in the field, you have to be at your best and hope that she’s not quite at hers.”

Tseng is looking for her 11th title of the season after winning in her homeland on Sunday.

She had four birdies in her opening round, but three putted for par on the 18th, after reaching the green in two strokes.

Tseng said: “I played pretty consistently today. It’s always good to be bogey-free, but I missed two four-foot putts, otherwise it could be better.

“It’s the first day of the tournament: I still have two days to go and I’m very happy with what I finished today, with a birdie on the last hole and I’m in a good position now.

“Today I didn’t hit it too good, it’s okay. I would say maybe, 70 per cent of it was pretty good, because I hit the shots straight and I drove the ball pretty good. I think I make lot of good strokes but the ball just didn’t go in.”

She is placed alongside the 2010 event champion Lee-Anne Pace from South Africa, Lisa Holm Sorensen and Line Vedel of Denmark, Scotland’s Kylie Walker and Italian Giulia Sergas.

Pace, who won her fifth LET title in a four-way play-off at the venue 12 months ago, was satisfied with five birdies and just one dropped shot at the 10th hole.  

Last year’s Henderson Money List winner felt that playing with Tseng had lifted her game: “If you look at her hitting balls: she strikes it so pure and straight down the fairway every time.”

Sorensen, meanwhile, is playing to secure her Tour card for the 2012 season and she said: “My game has been quite good today. I played pretty much flawless: hit many greens and gave myself a lot of opportunities out there and took the good ones, so all in all, I’m very happy with my game.”

Walker, a second year professional on the LET, carded three birdies in a row from the fourth hole and grabbed another on the par-five 18th.

“I’m happy with four under. It was all really quite steady. I only missed two greens, gave myself a lot of chances and made a few of them. It was really nice, stress free. I was never in trouble,” Walker said.

“I’m driving it nicely, which is an advantage around here if you can be in the right positions, it sets you up for a good shot into the green.”

Thailand’s Patcharajutar Kongkraphan recorded a hole-in-one during the first round.

The 19-year-old from Bangkok, otherwise known as ‘PK’, used her 50 degree wedge to ace the 127-yard par-three 17th hole.

Suzhou Taihu Ladies Open

Suzhou Taihu International Golf Club (par 72)

Scores at the end of round 1:

67 – Becky Brewerton (WAL)

68 – Lisa Holm Sorensen (DEN), Yani Tseng (TPE), Lee-Anne Pace (SA), Kylie Walker (SCO), Line Vedel (DEN), Giulia Sergas (ITA)

69 – Tan Ling Ling (CHN), Veronica Zorzi (ITA), Stacy Lee Bregman (SA), Caroline Hedwall (SWE)

70 – Jenni Kuosa (FIN), Beth Allen (USA), Anne-Lise Caudal (FRA), Jaclyn Sweeney (USA), Nontaya Srisawang (THA), Vikki Laing (SCO), Karen Lunn (AUS), Tiffany Tavee (USA), Nikki Garrett (AUS), Lu Yue Xia (CHN), Klara Spilkova (CZE)

71 – Becky Morgan (WAL), Hei-Ji Kim (KOR), Laura Davies (ENG), Melissa Reid (ENG), Russamee Gulyanamitta (THA), Zhang Yu Yang (CHN), Walailak Satarak (USA), Christine Song (USA), Guo Cai Zhu (CHN), Felicity Johnson (ENG), Kaisa Ruuttila (FIN), Zhong Xiao Long (CHN)

72 – Sophie Giquel-Bettan (FRA), Ursula Wikstrom (FIN), Pernilla Lindberg (SWE), Lin Xiyu (CHN), Minea Blomqvist (FIN), Yang Tao Li (CHN), Louise Larsson (SWE), Chien Pei Yun (TPE), Yan Jing (Am) (CHN), Thidapa Suwannapura (THA), Tiranun Yoopan (THA), Kim Welch (USA)

73 – Lynn Kenny (SCO), Tanaporn Kongkiatkrai (THA), Yang Hong Mei (CHN), Shang Lin Yan (CHN), Clare Queen (SCO), Ye Na Chung (KOR), Kristie Smith (AUS), Ashleigh Simon (SA), Tian Hong (CHN), Adriana Zwanck (ESP), Sophie Sandolo (ITA)

74 – Shi Yu Ting (Am) (CHN), Ornthana Chuenarrom (THA), Stacey Keating (AUS), Patcharajutar Kongkraphan (THA), Jennifer Rosales (PHI), Narisara Kerdrit (THA), Florentyna Parker (ENG), Valerie Tan (BRU), Joanna Klatten (FRA), Tania Elosegui (ESP), Zhang Yu Yu (CHN), Christel Boeljon (NL)

75 – Laurette Maritz (SA), Tandi Cuningham (SA), Frances Bondad (AUS), Yan Pan Pan (CHN), Lin Tzu Chi (TPE), Li Wei (CHN), Ana Larraneta (ESP), Caroline Rominger (SWI), Pennapa Pulsawath (THA), Jeehae Lee (KOR), Smriti Mehra (IN), Dewi Claire Schreefel (NL), Wang Xin (CHN)

76 – Morgana Robbertze (SA), Wang Wen Wen (CHN), Lotta Wahlin (SWE), Rachel Bell (ENG), Wang Yan Hua (CHN), Titiya Plucksataporn (THA), Riikka Hakkarainen (FIN)

77 – Gu Guo Yan (CHN), Mika Ikemura (JAP), Jessica Ji (KOR), Pei Lin Yu (TPE), Margherita Rigon (ITA), Samantha Richdale (CAN), Sophie Walker (ENG), Bai Yun Yan (CHN), Ren Xiao Zheng (CHN)

78 – Kuo Ai Chen (TPE), Shen Yan Hua (CHN), Gao Shuang (CHN), Rebecca Codd (IRE)

79 – Zheng Jin Xiang (CHN), Ki Shui Liao (HK), Lu Mei Ping (CHN), Heidi Chua (PHI)

80 – Saori Ikushima (JAP), Xia Xin (CHN)

81 – Shi Xiao Ying (CHN), Zhang Wei Wei (Am) (CHN)

82 – Ajira Nualraksa (THA)

84 – Zhou Qin (CHN)

RTD – Stefanie Michl (AUT), Yeh Hsinning (TPE)