Bob Hope Chrysler Classic: Wednesday's notes

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Joe Durant (CC), Tim Petrovic (CC), Shigeki Maruyama (CC), Mathew Goggin (CC) and Omar Uresti (PW) share the first-round lead of the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic hosted by George Lopez after posting matching 7-under 65s. This marks the fifth time in Bob Hope Chrysler Classic history that five players have shared the first-round lead (1960, 1961, 1970, 2005 and 2007).

Defending champion Charley Hoffman opened with a 68. (How/WireImage)

With the leaders sitting at 7-under 65, this marks just the fourth time in the last 16 years (dating back to 1993) that the first-round leader of the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic didn't open with a 9-under 63.

A total of 11 first-round leaders/co-leaders have gone on to win the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic , but none have done so since Mark Brooks in 1996.

Jeff Quinney is off to another hot start on the West Coast, firing a 6-under 66 on Wednesday at La Quinta Country Club. In 2007, the 2000 U.S. Amateur Championship winner opened with a 68 and eventually finished tied for 4th at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic -- the first of four consecutive top-10 finishes. He went on to finish 51st in the FedExCup Playoffs.

Richard Johnson, the leading money-winner on the 2007 Nationwide Tour, is looking to maintain his momentum in the state of California -- where he posted three of his four career titles, including most recently the 2007 Mark Christopher Charity Classic and the 2007 Nationwide Tour Championship at Barona Creek. The former Augusta State University All-American/Waffle House Manager is making just his third career TOUR appearance, with prior starts coming at the 2001 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am (tied for 36th) and the 2006 Nissan Open (missed cut). He opened with an even-par 72 at SilverRock Resort.

Defending champion Charley Hoffman opened with a 4-under-par 68 at SilverRock Resort and is currently tied for 23rd place, just three shots off the pace. Throughout the last 20 years of the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic , the only player who was closer to the lead while defending his title was Phil Mickelson in 2005 (two shots back). Hoffman is just one year removed from becoming just the second player in Bob Hope Chrysler Classic history to win the tournament in his initial try (Arnold Palmer, 1960).

Among the top 12 players on the leaderboard, Shigeki Maruyama (65/CC) and Jason Bohn (66/SR) are the only players making their first start at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic .

Since Johnny Miller won in back-to-back years in 1975-76 (the only player to perform the feat), just four players have posted top-10 finishes while defending their title -- including John Mahaffey in 1985 (tied for 8th), Kenny Perry in 1996 (tied for 7th), David Duval in 2000 (tied for 5th) and Phil Mickelson in 2003 (tied for 6th).

Low scores at the four tournament courses on opening day:

There were 11 bogey-free rounds on Wednesday:

The par-72 SilverRock Resort, making its inaugural appearance in the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic rotation, played the toughest among the four courses on Wednesday with a 70.125 average. Opening-round scoring averages are as follows: