Australians Adam Bland, Aaron Townsend and Matthew Ballard shot six-under-par 66s to lead after the first round of the New Zealand PGA Championship being played at The Hills, Queenstown.
They led by one shot from a pack of eight players, including defending champion New Zealander Michael Hendry.
Taking advantage of the early conditions, Townsend achieved the score with a bogey-free round but believed he left some birdies out on course.
“I was very lucky to start well – we had perfect conditions this morning so it was nice just to make six birdies and no bogeys – it was a pretty stress-free round,” said Townsend who finished inside the top 10 at last week’s Victorian Open.
“I played really good on my front nine – I hit it to 10 feet probably four times that I then missed, but I was hitting good putts so I wasn’t too disappointed.
“I played good last week but the putter didn’t really get hot until the last day so it’s nice to bring a bit of that with me this week.”
At the other end of the spectrum, 35-year-old Ballard has struggled recently with his form, having missed the cut at his past four PGA Tour of Australasia tournaments.
“It’s been a little rough, if I am honest,” said Ballard.
“But golf is a funny thing – you never know what’s around the corner. I keep telling myself that and the proof is in the pudding today.”
Ballard’s round was highlighted by consecutive eagles on the par-5 17th and par-4 18th.
Finishing late in the day, Bland had a dream eight-hole stretch, from the 15th to the 4th, that included an eagle, six birdies and just one par.
“I had a shaky start and then holed an eagle putt from just off the green on 15, hit a few close but, other than that, the putter just started working,” said Bland.
“I didn’t really give myself too many birdie opportunities coming in through the last five. It would have been nice to get a couple more but I am not unhappy with 6-under, that’s for sure.”
One of the tournament drawcards, three-time US Open champion Hale Irwin, had a much tougher time.
The 67-year-old American finished with an 80 to be near the rear of the field.