3 Tied for Lead After First Round at Volvo China Open

SHANGHAI — Most golfers at the Volvo China Open had trouble keeping their approach shots from flying off the firm greens at Tomson Golf Course on Thursday.

For a trio of European Tour veterans playing some of their best golf at the moment, the difficult conditions didn't pose too much of a problem.

Michael Hendry, Bradley Dredge and David Howell all shot a 4-under 68 to top the crowded leaderboard after a first round in which low scores proved difficult to post.

Hendry and Dredge were the only golfers to complete bogey-free rounds, while Howell had one bogey to go with five birdies.

"The greens were really firm so the big thing was if you were hitting fairways, you had chances on the par 5s and…