ORLANDO, Fla. -- The Bay Hill Invitational Presented by MasterCard is Dean Wilson’s 10th tournament this year, most on the PGA TOUR. He might be more tired if he weren’t playing so well.

Still seeking his first TOUR victory, Wilson grabbed a share of the first-round lead with Bart Bryant Thursday at Bay Hill Club & Lodge with a steady, bogey-free 6-under-par 66 to continue a string of sprints out of the gate. Wilson, 36, finds himself as the rabbit for the second time this year after shooting his seventh opening round in the 60s.

“I’m getting pretty good at getting started, and now it’s just a matter of knowing how to finish,” said the Hawaii native whose best career finish is a tie for third at the Valero Texas Open.

Indeed, Wilson has only one top-10 finish, two weeks ago at the Ford Championship at Doral, to show for what is one of the best stretches of his still developing career. That’s one reason why the road well traveled in 2006 hasn’t seemed so hard.

“I seem to be putting a lot of rounds together where I hit the ball nice and give myself a lot of chances,” Wilson said. “That’s what I’ve always been looking for, and so far this year I’ve done that a lot, so it’s quite pleasing.”

Proving that current form usually trumps past experience, Wilson’s opening salvo sure beats the 78-82 effort in his only other Bay Hill start two years ago. But his TOUR-leading 10th appearance in ’06 -- one more than Todd Fischer and rookie Nicholas Thompson, who are idle this week -- has as much to do with common sense as sensational golf.

It seems that the weather in Las Vegas, where Wilson now makes his home, has been more conducive to playing slots instead of golf shots. “The weather’s been so bad in Vegas, so I know if I go home I’m just going to be sitting around,” Wilson, in his fourth year on TOUR, pointed out. “I’d rather be out here playing and practicing.

“I think the key thing is that I’ve been comfortable with my game, so I’m not wearing myself out Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday beating a lot of balls and wearing myself out before the tournament starts. That’s helped me play a few more in a row.”

Having said that, Wilson wasn’t in the greatest shape when play commenced Thursday. The day prior he was supposed to join Grant Waite for a round at nearby Isleworth Country Club, home to Tiger Woods, Mark O’Meara and other TOUR players. But after hitting about a half-dozen balls, he decided he was too sick to do anything other than ride around in a cart and watch Waite, a good friend who introduced Wilson to teachers Andy Plummer and Mike Bennett, who have helped stabilize Wilson’s game since they got together in mid-2004.

“Good way to spend your afternoon,” said Wilson, whose biggest claim to fame as a pro was being paired with Annika Sorenstam at the 2003 Bank of America Colonial.

Much improved Thursday, he enjoyed that afternoon better and only a short miss at the ninth hole, his 18th, kept it from being perfect and prevented his claiming the outright lead.

“I made a bunch of putts today, but I wanted to make one more,” he said.

When you find your comfort zone, that’s what you expect to do. And Wilson is finally finding his. Playing in the spotlight with Sorenstam only made him stronger, but it’s been just recently that he isn’t intimidated by some of the game’s bigger names.

“Yeah, definitely, you’re intimidated,” he admitted. “All of the sudden you’re thrown into the arena with them and it’s something you need to get used to. Once you’re around them enough times you realize that they are just normal guys that play good golf. Every year I seem to get a little more comfortable with what’s going on.”

Which is why this year Wilson just seems like one of the guys.