First-round leader Andy Bean matched his career-best round on the Champions Tour with his 9-under-par 63 on Friday. He had posted a 9-under-par 63 just two weeks ago in the second round of the Constellation Energy Classic near Baltimore where he set a course and tournament mark. His 63 on Friday also matched the tournament and course record set in 2003 by Joe Inman in the second round.

• Bean’s four-stroke margin in the opening round is the largest in tournament history, but it also matches the largest first-round lead on the Champions Tour in 2006. Bobby Wadkins, who opened with a 9-under-par 62 at the Boeing Championship at Sandestin in May, also owned a four-stroke margin after the first round.

• Bean’s 63 was also the best opening-round score in tournament history, breaking the old mark of 64 by Bruce Fleisher and Larry Nelson in 2003.

• Chip Beck had another successful outing in just his second tournament on the Champions Tour, finishing with a 5-under-par 67 on Friday and is tied for second. Beck finished tied for fifth in his Champions Tour debut two weeks earlier in Baltimore at the Constellation Energy Classic.

• Mark Johnson, Dana Quigley, Bob Eastwood, Bill Longmuir, Curtis Strange and Ed Dougherty all played the first round without a bogey on their card.

• Defending champion Jay Haas opened with a 2-over-par 74 and is currently tied for 69th.

• Mark Johnson’s 5-under-par 67 is his best opening round since shooting a 6-under-par 66 in the year’s first event (MasterCard Championship at Hualalai). Johnson is one of three players currently tied for second along with Dana Quigley and Chip Beck. Johnson will need a good finish at the tournament. He is 31st on the 2006 money list and trails Bruce Lietzke by only $189 for the 30th position. The top 30 players earn berths in October’s Charles Schwab Cup Championship and it would also grant Johnson fully-exempt status for 2007.

• Four players aged 60+ all turned in impressive rounds on Friday. Tom Wargo (64-years-old) and Bob Eastwood (60-years-old) both shot 4-under-par 68s, while Jim Albus (66-years-old) and Vicente Fernandez (60-years-old) fired 3-under-par 69s. Albus needed just 25 putts on Friday.

• A total of 22 players had rounds in the 60s and 55 players in the field of 78 recorded sub-par rounds.

• Overall, the field averaged 70.833 on Friday, a significant drop from the 2005 opening-round average of 72.293.

• Most difficult hole was No. 11 with an average score of 4.244 (+.244). Easiest hole was No. 7 at 4.513 (-.487). There were three eagles and 35 birdies and only three players made bogeys.

• Bobby Wadkins, a two-time winner this year on the Champions Tour, withdrew following his round with a bad back.

• Denis Watson made his 2006 Champions Tour debut and shot a 3-over-par 75.

• Tom Kite put himself in position to extend his streak of top-10 finishes by opening with a 4-under-par 68 and is tied for fifth. He has seven straight top-10 finishes coming into this event.