Indian golfers Arjun Atwal and Jeev Milkha Singh opened with identical rounds of 2-under 69 each and were Tied-19th at the end of the first round at the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, one of the Majors for the Seniors, on the Champions Tour here.

As the Indian duo began strongly, leading the field in the USD 3.5 million seniors’ event (over-50s), were Australian Richard Green and Englishman Richard Bland, who shot 7-under 64 each at Harbor Shores.

Green hit all 13 fairways and 17 of the 18 greens in regulation en route to the 64.

Green shared the lead with Englishman Richard Bland, playing his first over-50s event. Bland showed great overall form and did not miss a fairway until the eighth hole, which was his 17th of the day. He was bogey free on his debut on the PGA TOUR Champions.

Defending champion Steve Stricker opened with a 5-under 66 and was among five players with 66.

Jeev, playing from the first alongside Italian Emanuele Canonica (69) and Jeff Schmid (66), opened on the first with three pars and then had a great run. He birdied the fourth and then had three in a row from seventh to ninth to turn in an impressive 4-under.

On the back, he missed a couple of birdie chances but was hit by a double bogey on Par-4 12th and no more birdies or bogeys to finish with 69.

Atwal, the only Indian to have won on the main PGA TOUR, began on the 10th with a birdie and added a second on the 12th. He dropped three shots in a row from 16th to 18th and turned in 1-over.

On the back nine, Atwal birdied the first, third and the ninth and bogeyed Par-4 sixth to finish in 69, while his playing partners Jake Reeves (89) and Kirk Triplett (75) struggled through the day.

Presidents Cup International team captain Mike Weir mixed six birdies with one bogey to open in 5-under 66 and was T-4. He played alongside Darren Clarke (67) and Ernie Els (70).