Taiwan's Cheng Tsung-pan shot a 7-under-par 65 at Shoal Creek on Wednesday to lead after the first round of the 104th Southern Amateur golf tournament.
At 18, Pan is among the younger players in a field dominated by older American university amateurs. He held a one-stroke margin over Patrick Cantley and two strokes over Richard Lamb.
At 7-under-par through his first 12 holes Wednesday, Pan had officials checking the Shoal Creek competitive course record. But the birdies stopped falling down the stretch and he finished two over the record 63 set by Gary Player in the 1984 PGA Championship.
''I feel good about my round today,'' Pan said. ''I putted well. I like the course.''
Pan took up golf in his home town of Miaoli, Taiwan, where his mother worked as a caddy. After showing promise, his father sent him to Bradenton, Florida to attend the Leadbetter Golf Academy. Bound this year for the University of Washington, he has placed in the top 10 in all three big amateur tournaments he entered this summer.
The field of 168 will be cut after Thursday's play for the final two rounds at Shoal Creek Country Club, which boasts a par-72 course measuring 7,211 yards.
