Russ Patterson of Bothell, Wash. strung together a solid round of 4-under par 68 that gave him a one stroke lead after the first round of the 27th Washington State Senior Men's Amateur, being held this week at Everett Golf and Country Club.
Despite the course playing at just 6158 yards, only seven out of the 88 players in the field broke par, as the club's tight tree-lined fairways caused a lot of problems for the state's finest senior amateur players.
Right behind Patterson are some of the championship's past champions, including Tom Brandes of Bellevue and Kent Brown of Colville, both being just three strokes back.
The day's weather turned out to be better than expected and the course has drained very well and is in great shape.
Tomorrow's first tee times are 8:00 a.m., with the leaders teeing off at 12:50 p.m.
