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By Dave Senko
PGA TOUR Staff

TIMONIUM, Md. -- Mark Wiebe, who won the Champions Tour's last event (SAS Championship), is among five players tied for the lead at 3-under-par 67 after the first round of the Constellation Energy Senior Players Championship. In his four rounds on the Champions Tour since turning 50 last month, Wiebe has either led or been tied for the lead.

On Thursday in Baltimore, Mark Wiebe continued his torrid pace since joining the Champions Tour. (Condon/PGA TOUR/WireImage)

Joining Wiebe atop the leaderboard are Scott Hoch, R.W. Eaks, Loren Roberts and Walter Hall, who is tied for a lead in a Champions Tour for the first time since the 2004 Administaff Small Business Classic.

Hall is one of two former University of Maryland Terrapins in the field. The other is Fred Funk, who later served as the men's golf coach at the school from 1982-88.

The starting field definitely had an international flavor. Players from 11 countries competed in Thursday's first round. In addition to the United States, there were players on hand from Canada, Australia, Thailand, Ireland, Argentina, Japan, Germany, England, Zimbabwe and South Africa.

Hole No. 18 at Baltimore Country Club easily proved to be the most difficult with a scoring average of 4.449 (+.449). The 496-yard par 4 yielded just one birdie, to Lonnie Nielsen. The next-hardest hole was No. 7 with an average score of 3.256 (+.256). The easiest hole was No. 4 at 4.718 (-.282)

Thursday's scoring average was 71.462. Nineteen players recorded sub-par rounds and 33 players finished at par or better.

Nick Price was the lone player in the 78-man field to play a bogey-free round on Thursday. Price's round included two birdies and 16 pars.

Defending champion Bobby Wadkins shot a 2-over-par 72 and is tied for 41st. Tom Kite had the fewest putts in the first round, 25. Mitch Adcock and Wayne Levi each hit all 14 fairways, while Tom Watson, D.A. Weibring and Walter Hall led all players in Greens in Regulation at 88.89% (16 of 18).

Curtis Strange and Craig Stadler led all players with six birdies each, but the pair had their problems on some of the other holes. Strange also had seven bogeys, while Stadler had five bogeys and a double.