Seamus Power made superb start at the Barracuda Championship to lie just three shots adrift of joint-first round leaders Ryan Moore and Adam Schenk at Tahoe Mountain Club.
Under the modified Stableford scoring system players receive 8 points for albatross, 5 for eagle, 2 for birdie, zero for par, minus-1 for bogey and minus-3 for double bogey or worse, with the Waterford native scoring 11 points, with the highlight of the round an eagle on the par-5 12th hole.
Power didn't drop a shot and also picked up three birdies and shares his lofty spot on the leaderboard with Americans Robert Streb and Patrick Roberts.
The only players ahead of them are Moore and Schenk on 14 points, with both men carding seven birdies in bogey-free rounds in high altitude on the Old Greenwood Course, the first-time venue after 21 years across the border in Nevada at Montreux Golf and Country Club.
"It was tough," Moore said. "The wind was kind of up and down out there. So, distance control was everything, and we did a really good job figuring out early in the week kind of what stock clubs are going up here, and we did a great job all day today of just getting it right around pin high and controlling our distances really well, which is just really important on a golf course like this."
The winner will earn a spot in the PGA Championship next week, if not already eligible. The top two from the top 10, not already eligible, will get spots in the US Open in September at Winged Foot.
