SHENZHEN, China – Alexander Levy of France shot a career-best 10-under 62 to open a four-shot lead after the second round of the China Open on Friday.

Henrik Stenson tried to keep alive his chances of taking over the No. 1 world ranking with a 70 to sit at 3 under overall, 11 shots behind Levy. The Swede can nudge Tiger Woods out of the top spot with a win here.

Levy, whose best finish on the European Tour was third place at last year’s BMW International Open, sunk a 20-foot eagle putt on the ninth hole to cap a front-nine 30.

He then birdied four more times on the back nine to finish at 14-under 130, four shots clear of Spaniard Adrian Otaegui in second.

“I played unbelievably,” Levy said. “I shot 63 at Kingsbarns during the Dunhill Links in Scotland last year, but this course is a lot tougher and I am only starting to realize how good that score is.”

Ian Poulter, meanwhile, saw a promising round fall apart on a disastrous par-5 13th hole where he was assessed a two-stroke penalty for playing from the wrong spot after hitting into dense foliage and incorrectly measuring his own drop. He took a triple-bogey and ended up with a 74, still good enough to make the cut.

The cut was at par, which U.S. PGA Championship winner Jason Dufner barely made after shooting a 71.

The 15-year-old Chinese amateur Guan Tianlang, however, was sent home after a 76. He’s only made one cut on the U.S. PGA and European Tours after his sensational debut at the Masters last year, when he became the youngest player to complete 72 holes.

Levy began his climb up the leaderboard in the Thursday twilight when most golfers were already in the clubhouse or long gone. Playing in one of the last groups, the Frenchman was tied for the lead but bogeyed the eighth hole in the faltering light before play was finally suspended.

“It was tough because it was dark and I made some bogey and I wasn’t happy in my bed last night,” he said. “I just focused on finishing the first round well this morning and continuing this afternoon.”

Levy was a newcomer to the tour – he gained his playing card only last year – but he’s been in these types of high-pressure situations before. He had a share of the lead with Ernie Els heading into the final round of the BMW International Open, but faltered with four bogeys in Sunday’s opening nine holes.

He said he’s been inspired by the recent performance of his good friend and fellow Frenchman, Victor Dubuisson, who held off Tiger Woods, Stenson and Poulter to win his first European Tour title at the Turkish Airlines Open in November.

“What he has done over the past few months has been amazing and it has really had an effect on all the French players, so hopefully I can try to emulate that,” Levy said.

If he stumbles, Stenson is close enough to make a move.

The No. 3-ranked Swede is on the mend after coming down with the flu this week, which prevented him from practicing before Thursday’s opening round. He said he felt better that night but then woke up on Friday weak and tired again.

Still, he believes he’s playing well enough to challenge the leaders this weekend.

“I made six birdies out there today and missed a few good opportunities to make more,” he said. “But then I threw a silly double in there and a few bogeys as well so I need to cut that out.”

Poulter was upset with himself, as well, after his mistake on the 13th. He measured two club-lengths for his first drop from the foliage, but that landed on a cart path, requiring a second drop. He measured two club-lengths again but should have just taken one.

“We make mistakes, I guess, and that was a fun one,” he said. “Guess I need to get the rulesbook back out and start chewing it.”

Dufner is happy just to be sticking around for the weekend after curling in a 15-footer for birdie on No. 6 and scrambling to make par on No. 9, his final hole.

“It’s been a struggle all year for me, so far, with scoring,” he said. “Luckily I play a lot of the tougher events so you don’t have to shoot a lot of low scores, but guys are shooting pretty good scores out here.”

SHENZHEN, China – Alvaro Quiros and Simon Dyson each shot a 5-under 67 to share the lead after the first round of the China Open on Thursday.

The pair were a stroke ahead of a group of six golfers that included defending champion Brett Rumford of Australia and Alexander Levy of France, who briefly moved into a tie with Quiros and Dyson in the growing darkness on his back nine but bogeyed the par-3 8th hole before play was suspended. He has one hole remaining to play.

England’s Ian Poulter was in a group of 12 golfers just behind at 3-under on a crowded leaderboard.

Henrik Stenson, who has a chance to take over the top ranking from Tiger Woods with a win here, had a 71. The Swede, currently ranked third, has been battling the flu this week and didn’t get in any practice time on the course at Genzon Golf Club before the opening round.

“I’m not throwing up but I’m not too keen on eating and my energy levels aren’t the best,” he said. “It’s not easy to play a golf course blind, and it definitely costs a couple of shots when you haven’t seen it, or haven’t played it.”

Chinese 15-year-old Guan Tianlang, who became the youngest player to make the cut at the Masters last year, was level with Stenson at 71.

“I think today I played pretty consistently. My putting feels good, but needs a couple changes so if tomorrow I got more birdies, will keep me going,” he said.

Quiros has six wins on the European Tour, but hasn’t had a top-3 finish in the past three seasons. The Spaniard said he’s worked on improving his putting this year and the results are starting to come – he finished tied for fifth at the Joburg Open in February and then joint 13th last week at the Malaysian Open.

“You can’t see it yet on the rankings, but I have been playing better,” said the Spaniard, ranked a lowly 240th in the world.

Dyson, who also has six wins on tour but none since 2011, said he played some of his best golf in a long time during his round, sinking six birdies to go with one bogey.

“I really didn’t miss a shot. I missed two fairways just, and didn’t miss a green so gave myself a lot chances, which is always nice,” he said.

Stenson is coming off a banner year that saw him become the first golfer to win the European Tour’s Race to Dubai and the U.S. PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup in the same season. He’s gotten off to a slow start this season, however, with his best finish a tie for 14th at the Masters.

According to the European Tour, Stenson can nudge Woods out of the top spot in the rankings this week only if wins the tournament and there are no withdrawals in the field to affect the maximum number of points he’d receive.

The Swede had back-to-back birdies on his first two holes, but then struggled to find the fairway and greens down the stretch, making four bogeys. He blamed the state of the rough for some “horrific lies.”

“I took a six on 13 by just being off the green – you can’t even get the ball hardly on the green to save par. I think it’s a course that when the rough gets that silly in certain areas, it kind of takes away a lot of skill,” he said.

Poulter is also looking for a boost, which he typically gets in Asia. He’s won three titles here, including the 2012 HSBC Champions at Mission Hills in Shenzhen.

He had four birdies and narrowly missed a couple others, including a 6-footer on the 9th that would have moved him into a share of the lead.

“Coming from Augusta National, where (the greens) are quite quick, you come here and the greens are very slow,” he said. “Even the putts that look downhill, down grain, are just not very quick and it takes some adjusting to.”

HOYLAKE, England – There will be a horseshoe grandstand around the 18th green for the first time at a British Open as part of a number of course changes for this year’s tournament at Hoylake.

Organizers say the Royal Liverpool course will be extended by 54 yards compared to 2006 – the last time it held the major – and the green on the first hole has been reshaped and rebunkered to make it the “hardest opening hole on the Open rota.”

Around 200,000 spectators are expected for the tournament, which would be a slight decrease compared to 2006 when 230,000 golf fans watched Tiger Woods win his 11th major title.

Malcolm Booth, communications director for organizer The R&A, says the cauldron feel around the 18th will “provide a unique atmosphere for an Open.”

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Lee Westwood ended a two-year winless drought with a seven-shot victory at the Malaysian Open on Sunday.

After a four-hour delay due to the threat of lightning in the middle of the final round, Westwood went on to shoot a 4-under par 68 to complete an 18-under 270 at the Kuala Lumpur Country Club course for his 36th career victory.

Westwood led from start to finish in the co-sanctioned European and Asian Tour event that he also won in 1997.

“It’s a golf course that suits my game; it’s very tight in certain areas. I played well, I putted well, and the short game is good,” Westwood said.

South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen (68), the 2012 champion, along with Belgium’s Nicolas Colsaerts (70) and Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger (67) shared a distant second place on 11 under.

The win will not only improve Westwood’s ranking but also help him improve on his current 20th place in the European Ryder Cup standings.

“I feel like I’ve got a short game back and I’m starting to roll a few putts in,” he added. “It makes a helluva difference if you can get up-and-down if you miss a few greens as it keeps the momentum going.”

Westwood, who turns 41 next week, went into the final round leading by one having let slip a four-shot second round lead.

But the 36th-ranked Englishman, and highest ranked player in the field, again found himself four clear after only two holes where nearest rival and playing partner Andy Sullivan triple-bogeyed the second hole after finding water with his tee shot.

Westwood’s drive to victory was then halted mid-afternoon when the threat of lightning stopped play and his lead at four through 11 holes.

He returned to the course after a delay of four hours and 13 minutes to birdie the 13th for a six-shot lead.

Westwood then underlined his class with a birdie on the last.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Lee Westwood saw his four-shot lead trimmed to just one on Saturday after a bogey at the final hole of the third round of the Malaysian Open.

Westwood shot a 1-under 71 for a three-round total of 14-under 202 but is only one shot ahead of English compatriot Andy Sullivan, who had a 66 as he chases his first tour title. Frenchman Julien Quesne is another three shots back in third place after a 69.

Westwood, who turns 41 next week, won the Malaysian Open in 1997 and is looking for a repeat to end a near two-year winless drought. For a third day in a row he birdied the opening hole of the Kuala Lumpur Golf Club course before dropping a shot with a three-putt bogey at the second.

He added birdies at the fifth – also for a third day in succession – and at the par-3 12th before two-putting the final green for bogey after having to play his approach shot from the slope of a fairway bunker.

“It was tricky out there and I didn’t play as well as I did the first two days and there was some tough flags out there,” Westwood said. “I got a couple of bad breaks out there today but I am leading with a day to play, so I am quite happy with that.”

Italy’s Matteo Manassero celebrated his 21st birthday with his best round of the tournament, a 67 to sit in a tie for 14th at 6 under.

Defending champion Kiradech Aphibarnrat was forced to pull out ahead of the third round because of inflammation of his tonsils.

There was no sign of the hornets that attacked Pablo Larrazabal on the 14th hole during Friday’s second round, forcing the Spaniard to jump into a water hazard. Larrazabal shot a 70 to sit tied for 23rd at 4 under.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Lee Westwood jumped out to a four-shot lead and Pablo Larrazabal jumped into a water hazard to escape hornets during the Malaysian Open second round on Friday.

Westwood moved closer to ending a two-year winless drought in adding a 6-under-par 66 to his opening round of 65 at Kuala Lumpur Country Club.

However, the action was overshadowed by Larrazabal needing on-course medical attention after being attacked by hornets at the 14th hole, the fifth of his round.

“They were three times the size of bees,” he said. “They were huge and like 30 or 40 of them started to attack me big time. I didn’t know what to do. My caddie told me to run, so I start running like a crazy guy, but the hornets were still there, so the other players told me to jump in the lake.

“I ran to the lake, threw my scorecard down, took off my shoes and jumped in the water. It was the scariest moment of my career, for sure. I’ve never been so scared.”

Larrazabal received medical treatment, including injections, for multiple stings. Then, in putting his shirt back on, the hornets also returned, so he played his last five holes in a borrowed shirt.

Incredibly, he birdied the 14th hole en route to a round of 68 and a share of 25th place on 2 under.

“It looks like I’ll be playing the weekend, so tomorrow it will be very, very scary to play that hole,” Larrazabal said.

In January, he defeated Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy to capture the Abu Dhabi Championship.

Former No. 1 Westwood picked up eight birdies with his only error being a double bogey when he found water guarding the green at the par-three 11th hole.

“On the front nine I shot 5 under for my second day running, and the longest putt I holed was from four feet on the first. It was solid stuff.

“I got a little unlucky at 11, it was one of the best shots I hit all day, and the wind just gusted on me and it came up short in the water. But I rallied after that.”

Antonio Lascuna from the Philippines carded 65 to hold the lead at 9 under before being overtaken by Westwood.

Lascuna has won twice on the Asian Tour, and he shares second place with Nicolas Colsaerts of Belgium, who has scored 66-69.

Defending champion Kiradech Aphibarnrat of Thailand was tied with Larrazabal after a pair of 71s.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Determined to end a two-year title drought, Lee Westwood shot a 7-under 65 Thursday to take the lead at storm-affected Malaysian Open.

Westwood had a bogey at his first hole but birdied four of his closing five to take a one-shot lead ahead of Nicolas Colsaerts of Belgium before play was suspended because of the risk of lightning.

A tropical downpour in the afternoon had previously halted play for more than an hour, and 45 players in the 156-man field will have to complete their first round on Friday.

The 36th-ranked Westwood is coming off a seventh-place finish at the Masters last weekend – his best so far this year – and is looking to repeat his Malaysian Open victory from 1997.

“I didn’t make the best of starts bogeying … the first hole, but fortunately that didn’t set the tone,” Westwood said. “I hit it really well and hit it close a lot. I had to be patient because I was hitting good putts and they weren’t going in (until) I holed one from about eight feet on my 16th.”

Colsaerts recovered from a neck injury that forced him out of the Houston Open earlier this month and carded a 66. Northern Ireland’s Michael Hoey and Portugal’s Ricardo Santos were a stroke further back in the co-sanctioned European and Asian Tour event.

Colsaerts, a former Ryder Cup player who has slipped to 131st in the world, had eight birdies and two bogeys in his round.

“I’ve felt I’ve played pretty well since early in the season, but there’s always been a stretch of holes where I’ve shot myself in the foot for some reason,” Colsaerts said. “I’ve missed good opportunities to have good weeks. So the plan is to come back here to get some momentum and confidence back.”

Defending champion Kiradech Aphibarnrat of Thailand shot a 71 and 2012 winner Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa had a 72.

CADIZ, Spain – Unheralded Marco Crespi of Italy won his first European Tour title after carding a 3-under 69 in the final round to claim the inaugural edition of the NH Collection Open on Sunday.

Playing in his 25th European Tour event, the 35-year-old Crespi had five birdies to overcome a pair of bogeys on the final day to end two strokes ahead of nearest rivals Richie Ramsay of Scotland and Spaniard Jordi Garcia.

Felipe Aguilar and overnight leader Matthew Nixon finished three shots back.

Crespi stumbled with back-to-back bogeys on the 12th and 13th holes, but he responded with a birdie on the 14th before making par down the stretch to take the win at La Reserva de Sotogrande Golf Club.

“I started very well today,” said Crespi. “I birdied the first and that gave me the confidence to go low. I just had to manage my pressure on the back nine.”

Crespi’s previous best finish was fourth at the South African Open earlier this year.

CADIZ, Spain – England’s Matthew Nixon shot a 7-under 65 to take a one-stroke lead after the third round at the NH Collection Open on Saturday.

Nixon had nine birdies to overcome a pair of bogeys in the best round of the inaugural tournament at La Reserva de Sotogrande Golf Club for an overall 8-under 208.

Marco Crespi of Italy is one stroke behind Nixon with Chile’s Felipe Aguilar another shot back in third.

Poor weather and then bad light had forced the opening two rounds to be suspended on Thursday and Friday, and the third round only got under way after 45 golfers finished their second round early Saturday morning.

Nixon says “I had a nice start and it just kept going.”

CADIZ, Spain – Marc Warren of Scotland shot a 5-under 67 Friday to take the clubhouse lead at the NH Collection Open before the second round was suspended because of darkness.

Warren made six birdies and a bogey for a 5-under total of 139 to sit one shot ahead of Felipe Aguilar of Chile, who carded a 69.

David Horsey of England was also on 5 under through 15 holes to join Warren atop the leaderboard before play was stopped.

Rain delayed the start of the inaugural event on Thursday, forcing the first round to also be suspended and finished on Friday morning.

Horsey and 44 more golfers in the 144-player field will have to complete the second round early Saturday.