Martin Kaymer of Germany is the latest European star to join the PGA Tour.
With his closest rivals sitting on the sidelines, Rory McIlroy can wrap up the European Tour money title with a strong showing at this week's Singapore Open.
Louis Oosthuizen and Adam Scott took advantage of the par 5s at Mission Hills and each had a 7-under 65 on Thursday to lead the HSBC Champions after the first round.
The longer the holes at the Mission Hills golf course, the better Louis Oosthuizen and Adam Scott seemed to play.
The HSBC Champions lost some star power when Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods decided to skip the World Golf Championship event _ much to the disappointment of the tournament backers.
Ryder Cup-winning captain Jose Maria Olazabal and Europe team members Nicolas Colsaerts, Paul Lawrie, Francesco Molinari and Peter Hanson will all play at the Volvo Golf Champions in South Africa in January.
The Race to Dubai on the European Tour heads for the home stretch, and Rory McIlroy is sitting out one of the richer events this week in the HSBC Champions.
Rory McIlroy outdueled Tiger Woods in the first one-on-one exhibition match between golf's two biggest names.
Nick Watney missed a chance for a 59 on Sunday in his CIMB Classic victory, closing with a course-record 10-under 61 at The Mines despite a bogey at the 18th.
