Golf: Lydia Ko shares first round lead at Scottish Open

Lydia Ko of New Zealand. Photo / AP.

New Zealand's Lydia Ko has a share of the lead after the first round of the Ladies Scottish Open overnight (NZ time).

Ko and Norway's Suzann Pettersen fired both fired four under par 68s in windy conditions at the Dundonald Links in North Ayrshire.

Ko went bogey free in an opening round which also contained four birdies.

Ko told the Ladies European Tour website she did not know what to expect from the "tough" course.

"You can see by the scores it's not crazy low, but I think we were lucky with the wind not being as strong as it was the last couple of days," she said.

"Playing over here in the Scottish Open, you can't use the same game as you can in the States. You're hitting different shots and I think the key to playing well here is being really creative, because you need to find the shot that will give you a high percentage."