Gove, Campbell tied for the lead

Jeff Gove and Chad Campbell are tied atop the leaderboard after the opening round of the Turning Stone Resort Championship.

Both players shot seven under-par 65s on the first day of the USD$6m tournament, leaving them one stroke clear of four players at six-under.

Steve Flesch, John Senden, Matthew Goggin and Brendon De Jonge each fired six-under 66s to forge a tie for second place.

Gove offset two bogeys with seven birdies over the first 13 holes at Atunyote Golf Club before punctuating his first round with an eagle on the par-five 18th hole.

The 36-year-old has never finished higher than sixth in a PGA Tour event.

He finished before Campbell, who played just as well, recording eight birdies and just one bogey. Campbell birdied the 18th to pull even with Gove.

John Rollins, who won the BC Open at the same venue last year, is at five-under along with John Mallinger, Robert Allenby, Tag Ridings and Matt Hendrix.

At 22nd on the money list, Rollins is safely inside the cut-off for his tour card and should be able to wrap up an invite to a pair of majors with a strong showing.

A number of players in the field are looking to get into the top 125 on the money list and retain their tour cards for next season.