Fog and pollution descended on northern China yesterday, forcing international golf and tennis players to play in hazardous smog and leading to flight cancellations and road closures as millions of Chinese headed home from an extended national holiday.

Smog blankets Beijing during China's national holiday.

On Beijing's biggest weekend of the year for sports so far, spectators at the China Open tennis tournament and an inaugural women's golf tournament pulled their shirts up over their faces and used masks and bandanas to try to avoid the noxious air.

"It's not ideal in terms of pollution," the world's No. 1 men's tennis player, Novak Djokovic, said after overcoming the smog and Rafael Nadal to win his fourth China Open title.

"Yes, we've been talking about the weather conditions, but it is what it is, it's something that has been the same for the last few years that I've been coming back here," the Serbian told reporters.

At the Reignwood LPGA Classic, the first Ladies Professional Golf Association event held in China, tee times were delayed to allow some of the smog to dissipate, but some players still wore masks.

As of 2pm, all 35 monitoring centers across the city indicated heavy air pollution at the highest level of six, according to the Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Center.

The density of PM 2.5, tiny particles hazardous to health, exceeded 200 micrograms per cubic meter, the center said.

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