(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-03-29 14:59

XIAMEN - On a day of two holes-in-one, teenage amateur sensation Hu Mu rode a hot putter to a five-under-par 65 and a two-stroke lead in the 100,000 US dollars Dell golf championship in Xiamen, the second tournament on this year's 10-event Omega China Tour.

The 18-year-old Florida-based student will play on Saturday with 28-year-old Yuan Hao, who shot a 68, and 39-year-old local favorite Wu Weihuang, a former Kung Fu champion who also shot 68 and is in third place on two-under 138.

Hu's performance was remarkable considering he had felt ill enough to consider withdrawing on the eve of the tournament, before soldiering through with an opening 70 at the Orient (Xiamen) Golf and Country Club.

After struggling on the slow greens at the Orient (Xiamen) Golf and Country Club, the teenager credited his dramatic second-day improvement to words of advice from the United States.

"In the first round I realized the greens were slow, so I called my coach in Florida in the evening and asked him for some advice," said Hu, who's schooled at the David Leadbetter Golf Academy and is ranked 11th in the latest American Junior Golf Association rankings.

"It obviously paid off. However, I can't say what the advice was.Otherwise, the other players might use it."

Hu, who shot a career-low 10-under 62 in Tennessee last year, is playing his third successive tournament in China as he prepares to embark on a golf scholarship at Florida University in August.

"I haven't putted well in the past two weeks, although I have been driving well," said Hu, the third highest-placed Chinese player in last week's KEB Invitational in Shanghai.

"Basically, I'm driving well and my mental game is good, so my score just depends on my putting."

Yuan Hao, the top Chinese finisher in the KEB Invitational, is also in good form and looking forward to playing with Hu.

"Hu Mu is a very gifted player and part of the new generation of Chinese golfers with professional coaches. They're conditioned for tournament play," said Yuan, who has finished eighth, fifth and sixth respectively in the Omega Order of Merit for the past three seasons.

The long-driving Yuan has played in every event on the Omega China Tour since its inception in 2005, and isn't worried about playing with the teenage talent.

"I've a lot of experience on this Tour, so I'll just play my game, stroke by stroke. The way I putt suits this course. I know what I'm doing and I'm confident. My driving is fine, so I think I can play even better than I did in Shanghai last week," he said.

"I'm also chipping particularly well, as I've been working hard on my short game," added Yuan, who chipped in on hole two in the first round and on the 10th on day two.

Liu Guojie, 41, who led after day one with a 64, fell back to fourth on one-under 139, level with defending champion Li Chao and Chen Xiaoma.

Li, the 2005 and 2007 Omega Order of Merit winner, followed his opening 69 with an even-par round to stay in position to retain the title he won last September with a closing 66.

"I played better than yesterday and I gave myself a lot of birdie chances today, but I didn't putt well. The greens are quite slow," said the 27-year-old, who admitted he had been unable to follow his own advice.

"After the first round, I told myself: 'No more three putts'. This was my mission. Then on my first hole (the 10th), I three-putted for a bogey."

Li won last year's Xiamen Championship by one shot from Shang Lei after starting the final day seven shots behind third-round leader Wu Kangchun. "Last time I caught up at the weekend, so I hope I can do the same again," he said.

Chen Xiaoma, the Most Improved Player on last year's Tour, shot a 66 to enhance his growing reputation and give himself a chance of his first title.

"I shot seven birdies during my round, which is a record for me. My short game was good, as I've practised this a lot during the last three months when there have been no events," said the 29-year-old.

"I usually aim for the top 10, but now I'm aiming to finish in the top-five," added Chan, who finished second, third and fourth in last year's Tour on his way to finishing eighth in the Omega Order of Merit.

The Chinese Taipei pair of Hsu Mongnan and Chan Yihshin, joint runners-up at the season-opening Guangzhou Championship two weeks ago, are also in close attendance.

Hsu shot a 71 and is tied-seventh on even-par with Zhou Xunshu, Chen Yu and Kong Weihai. Chan added a surprise-free 71 to his rollercoaster opening 70 that included an eagle, six birdies, one bogey, a double-bogey and a quintuple-bogey nine.

Teaching pro Yu Gendong, in second place after day one with a career-best 67, achieved his initial aim of making the cut following a 75. Zhang Lianwei followed his opening 73, which included a rare triple-bogey, with a 70.

The second day was also lit up by two holes-in-one, only one less than the total recorded throughout the Tour's eight events in 2007.

Zhang Wei, who hit the first shot in the Omega China Tour's inaugural event in Beijing in 2005, played another memorable tee-shot when he recorded the second ace of his career, an eight-iron on the 165-yard eighth. Fu Tai later holed out with his tee-shot on the 180-yard 12th.