Teater Leader in Reno-Tahoe Open


Josh Teater rose to the top of the leaderboard in the Reno-Tahoe Open after scoring 15 points in the modified Stableford tournament. The $3 million PGA Tour stop began Thursday at Montreux Golf & Country Club in Reno, Nev.

Teater, a 34-year-old Kentuckian in search of his first Tour win, carded six birdies, an eagle on the par-5 eighth hole and two bogeys for a one-stroke lead over Gary Woodland and James Driscoll and two over Greg Chalmers. Three back were Stuart Appleby and Colt Knost. Defending champion J.J. Henry had three points.

Situated at 5,500 feet above sea level, the Tour players get some whopping drives at this high-elevation, 7,472-yard course. On the eighth, Teater hit a 341-yard tee shot and a 298-yard hybrid to 16 feet and made the putt.

"It was kind of a funny day out there," said Teater. In addition to worrying about proper club selection, the players had to deal with wind gusts in excess of 30 mph in the opening round. "It was swirling," Teater added. "You get between the trees and going up the mountain and it's always hard to judge."

A long-hitter at sea level, Woodland launched a 370-yard drive on the par-5 18th followed by a 266-yard 5-iron and a two-putt for birdie. "I think length is a huge advantage here," the Kansan said. "With the altitude, I was hitting middle irons into the par-5s."

Chalmers, an Australian, is used to windy conditions in his home country but the mile-high elevation can be confusing. "I grew up in western Australia in the third-windiest city in the world, so the wind doesn't bother me," the left-hander told reporters.

"It's figuring out the yardages based on the altitude and the downhills we have. On the last hole today I had 175 actual yards, but I was hitting pitching wedge, which normally goes 130 yards. So, once you figure out all those numbers, it's quite mind boggling to think this is actually going to go far enough. You need a master's in calculus sometimes to figure out the angles."

For updated scoring, visit http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/reno-tahoe-open/leaderboard.html.