SAN MARTIN, Calif. (AP) - Coming off his worst year, Jeff Overton opened the new PGA Tour season on a good note.
Once he finally made a putt Thursday in the Frys.com Open, Overton felt as if he couldn't miss. Over the last 11 holes at CordeValle, he made three birdie putts over 25 feet and a 20-foot eagle putt when his gamble paid off on the par-5 ninth.
He finished with a tap-in birdie on the 18th for a 7-under 64 and a one-shot lead over Brian Harman.
"It really helps if you can get off to a good start," Overton said. "It would be great if we can continue this thing and keep it rolling."
Harman finished with back-to-back birdies from short range and had eight birdies on his round. Kyle Stanley had a 66.
The group at 4-under 67 included Michael Putnam, who won the Web.com Tour money title last season to earn full status, and Brooks Koepka, the most traveled player at the Frys.com Open. This is the fourth tour Koepka has played this year. He earned his European Tour card by winning three times on the Challenge Tour. He also played a Web.com Tour event, and the Florida State alum is headed to China in two weeks for the BMW Masters.
Ryo Ishikawa, who had to earn his card back at the Web.com Tour Finals, opened with a 69. Hideki Matsuyama, one of three players at the Presidents Cup last week, had a 70.
The PGA Tour season is starting in October instead of January for the first time in history. The official season ends next September at the Tour Championship, although there will be a six-week break leading to the Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.
LPGA MALAYSIA
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) - South Korea's Ilhee Lee shot a 7-under 64 to take a one-stroke lead over American Brittany Lang after the first round of the LPGA Malaysia.
Paula Creamer, Jodi Ewart Shadoff, Beatriz Recari and Eun-Hee Ji shot 66 at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club. Second-ranked Suzann Pettersen had a 67. She's coming off consecutive victories in the Safeway Classic and Evian Championship, the final major of the season.
Top-ranked Inbee Park, the defending champion, opened with a 70.
PORTUGAL MASTERS
VILAMOURA, Portugal (AP) - Spain's Alviro Quiros shot a 6-under 65 on his home course for a share of the first-round lead in the European Tour's Portugal Masters.
Felipe Aguilar, Maximilian Kieffer, Graeme Storm, Jamie Donaldson, David Lynn and Simon Thornton also shot 65 at Oceanico Victoria. Quiros won the 2008 tournament.
U.S. MID-AMATEUR
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - Michael McCoy won the U.S. Mid-Amateur for his first USGA title, routing Bill Williamson 8 and 6 in the 36-hole final at the Country Club of Birmingham.
The 50-year-old McCoy, from West Des Moines, Iowa, is the second-oldest winner in the event limited to players 25 and older. Randal Lewis won the 2011 tournament at 54.
An insurance agent, McCoy was reinstated as an amateur after a brief pro career following his college days Wichita State. He earned a spot in the Masters with victory.
The 36-year-old Williamson is from Cincinnati.
U.S. WOMEN'S MID-AMATEUR
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) - Julia Potter won the U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur at Biltmore Forest, beating Margaret Shirley in 19 holes to become the USGA's first female left-handed champion.
The 25-year-old Potter, a recently reinstated amateur from Granger, Ind., is a former University of Missouri player who spent two years on the Symetra Tour and now works as a professional event coordinator.
The 27-year-old Shirley is from Roswell, Ga.
The event is limited to players 25 and older.