BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- Jay Haas has been shooting his age or better for the last three years, just never on a stage quite like Thursday in the U.S. Senior Open.
Haas steadied himself from an up-and-down start at soggy Saucon Valley and played much younger than his 68 years down the stretch, posting a 4-under 67 to share the lead with Mark Hensby after the opening round.
Haas became the fifth player in U.S. Senior Open history to shoot his age, joining Tom Watson, Hale Irwin, Harold McSpaden and Jerry Barber, who did it nine times. Barber was the oldest first-time winner of a major in the 1961 PGA Championship.
"That's a pretty good score to break (your age) on a course like this," said Haas, who had shot his age six previous times on the PGA Tour Champions, but never in a major.
Little Rock's Glen Day is only three shots behind the leaders. Day shot a 1-under 71 and is tied for ninth place. Ken Duke (Arkadelphia, Henderson State) shot a 2-over 73.
Haas and Hensby were a shot ahead of Steve Stricker, Rocco Mediate, Paul Broadhurst and Tim Petrovic. Even with the rain that pounded Saucon Valley in the morning and left green receptive even when it relented, only 11 players managed to break par.
The co-leaders benefited from the later start because of the steady rain all morning that made it difficult to keep clubs dry. Paul Goydos had the low score from the morning wave at 69, prompting the Californian to say, "This is more rain than we've had in 10 years."
Defending champion Jim Furyk, who missed the cut by a shot last week at Brookline in the U.S. Open, opened with a 71. Steve Alker, the leading player on the PGA Tour Champions this year, had a 72 in his U.S. Senior Open debut.
Mark Hensby watches his tee shot on No. 10 during the first round of the U.S. Senior Open golf tournament Thursday, June 23, 2022, at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pa. (Rick Kintzel/The Morning Call via AP)
Stephen Dodd tees off on No. 1 during the first round of the U.S. Senior Open golf tournament Thursday, June 23, 2022, at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pa. (Rick Kintzel/The Morning Call via AP)
Jim Furyk chips onto the second green during the first round of the U.S. Senior Open golf tournament Thursday, June 23, 2022, at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pa. (Rick Kintzel/The Morning Call via AP)