Australian native Mike Harwood holds the first-round lead at the 2011 Champions Tour National Qualifying Tournament at TPC Scottsdale's Champions Course. Harwood opened with a 6-under-par 65 and leads Keith Clearwater, Bob Niger and Jeff Freeman by one stroke.
The Sydney native's round included eight birdies and just two bogeys. After making a three-putt bogey at the par-3 third hole, Harwood birdied five of his next six holes to make the turn at 4-under-par. One of those birdies came at No. 5 when he chipped in from 33 feet. After another three-putt bogey at the par-3 13th hole, Harwood would close with birdies on Nos. 15, 16 and 18 where he chipped in from 15 feet to close out his day.
"It took me a little while to get going today since I haven't played in one of these in awhile, but once I settled down, my short game was really fantastic. It's probably been six months since my short game has been as good as it was today," Harwood said after his round. "I played reasonable, but my short game was unbelievable."
The winner of 13 events worldwide, including five on the European Tour, the 52-year-old Harwood is currently sixth on the European Senior Tour's Order of Merit. He made two starts in Champions Tour events this year, finishing T39 at the Senior PGA Championship and T23 in the Senior British Open.
Minutes after Harwood posted his 6-under-par 65, Keith Clearwater, the 2010 medalist at this event, appeared poised to take over the lead from Harwood. He teed off at No. 18 at 7-under-par, but misfortune struck on his second shot when he hit a 6-iron left into the water, resulting in a double bogey and a 5-under-par 66.
"Pretty frustrating finish," Clearwater said. "I hit a good 3-wood off the tee down the middle of the fairway. I hit a 6-iron with my second shot but I hit it a little heavy and pulled it left into the water. I hit a good shot in there about eight feet and didn't make it. I just finished poorly; it's a little frustrating. I wasted a lot of golf out there at the end."
Nearly the same fate later befell Willie Wood. He came to No. 18 tied for the lead at 6-under-par, but like Clearwater, made a double bogey to drop out of a share of the lead and into a tie for fourth place.
With near-perfect scoring conditions, a total of 38 players in the 78-man field finished with rounds under par, including 30 rounds in the 60s.
There will be no cut in the 72-hole qualifier. At the end of 72 holes, the top-5 finishers earn fully-exempt status for the 2012 season, while the next seven players will be conditionally exempt. In addition, the top 30 finishers and ties will be eligible to compete for spots in open qualifiers at all co-sponsored events on the Champions Tour in 2012.
