Beachwood, OH (My Sportsbook) - Scott Hoch and Tom Purtzer both posted rounds of four-under 66 on Thursday to share the opening-round lead of the 70th Senior PGA Championship.
Bernhard Langer, the leading money winner on the Champions Tour, carded a two- under 68 and is alone in second place at Canterbury Golf Club.
This is the first major championship of the 2009 campaign for the elder circuit. Almost anything would look easier compared to last year at Oak Hill, but only 10 of the 156 players who teed it up on Thursday broke par.
Hoch flew out of the gate on Thursday. At the first hole, he hit a sand-wedge to five feet and sank the birdie putt. On two, Hoch knocked a six-iron 12 feet behind the stick and converted for a pair of opening birdies.
Hoch had to wait a few holes for his next birdie. On the sixth, he rolled home a downhill 20-footer to reach three-under par for the championship.
After six pars around the turn, Hoch played his tee ball 15 feet left of the flag at the par-three 13th. He holed that birdie putt and made it two in a row when he kicked in a six-footer at 14.
Hoch reached six-under par at the long, par-five 16th. He couldn't get to the putting surface in two, but bumped his sand-wedge third shot to six feet and holed the birdie effort.
Things came apart late for Hoch.
At the 17th, he hit a terrible three-iron and walked off with a bogey. On 18, Hoch elected to go with a three-wood off the tee, then hit a four-iron. He admitted to picking the wrong club and after the wind finished with his ball, Hoch sailed over the green.
He made bogey, but still did enough for a share of the first-round lead in a major.
"I would say that if I wouldn't have stepped on myself then I would have already been six-under," said Hoch. "But I also realize that I played very well today, got the ball in the good position a number of times, and that might not happen the other days."
Hoch is one of a handful of players who participated in the 1979 U.S. Amateur Championship at Canterbury, however he doesn't really think the experience will help.
Probably because he barely remembers a thing.
"Don't remember the clubhouse, a single hole, anything. Absolutely nada. All I know is I got beat early," said Hoch, who lost in the second round 30 years ago.
Purtzer also played Canterbury before, but it was a sponsor outing and, like Hoch, he has a bit of a fuzzy memory.
"I did a Ford outing. I got to play with a real good friend of mine, but it rained all day," said Purtzer. "And that was one of those days where you had your rain gear on and all you wanted to do was hit your next shot and it was just one of those days, and I didn't remember a thing about it."
He started on the 10th tee Thursday and parred his first four holes. At the 14th, Purtzer hit a pitching-wedge to eight feet to set up birdie. He collected back-to-back birdies thanks to a tap-in birdie at the par-five 15th.
Purtzer's second at the par-five 16th narrowly missed the fairway and it impacted his shot. He chunked a sand-wedge from a tough lie and ended up with a bogey.
He atoned for the error quickly at 17 when he hit a three-iron to the back of the green, but made it for birdie.
Purtzer recorded a string of pars until he got to the 384-yard, par-four fifth. He used a three-wood off the tee, and that drive left him with a wedge approach he stopped two feet from the cup. Purtzer tapped in, then got to minus-four thanks to a nine-foot birdie putt at eight.
He two-putted from a long way at the par-three ninth for his piece of first.
"I wouldn't say I had too many high expectations, but I kind of felt like I was going to play good today," said Purtzer. "I had a good feeling coming into today and fortunately it paid off."
Tom Kite, Dana Quigley, John Morse, Mark James, Joey Sindelar, Larry Mize and Gary Hallberg are tied for fourth place at one-under-par 69.
Defending champion Jay Haas shot a one-over 71 and is part of a group tied for 23rd place.
Greg Norman managed a three-over 73 and Mark O'Meara, who won that 1979 U.S. Amateur title, struggled to a six-over 76.
