Hong Kong, Nov 24 (IANS): Indian golfer S.S.P. Chawrasia carded a five-under-par 65 to lead the first round of the 2017 UBS Hong Kong Open here on Thursday.

"I played well today. I hit the ball well and made some nice putts. Conditions were very tough today especially with the wind and I'm very happy my five-under par today." Chawrasia said as reported by Xinhua news agency.

The six-time Asian Tour winner leads by one over Matthew Fitzpatrick of Britain and Shubhankar Sharma of India after overcoming the tricky windy conditions at the Hong Kong Golf Club.

"I was just trying to hit the second shot onto the green and get the ball as close as possible to the hole. I've been playing well this year and I've a good chance of finishing up the year well," added Chawrasia.

American Micah Lauren Shin delivered a 67 to take the fourth place that includes Thailand's Poom Saksansin and Philippines' Angelo Que.

Supported by the Hong Kong Mega Events Fund, the Hong Kong Golf Open is one of the longest-running sporting events in Asia and is tri-sanctioned by the Asian Tour, European Tour and Hong Kong Golf Association.