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Thursday, October 5

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. -- Sean Murphy gave himself an engagement gift on Thursday.

Two weeks after getting engaged to be married, Murphy was one of five golfers who fired 5-under 66s Thursday to share the lead after the first round of the $3 million Michelob Championship.

	Steve Pate's only bogey came on his finishing hole, No. 9, during a 66 and a share of the lead.

Steve Pate, J.P. Hayes, Robert Damron and Cameron Beckman also were tied for the lead, while Billy Andrade, Keith Clearwater, Frank Lickliter, Kevin Sutherland and Perry Moss were one shot back after opening with 67s at the River Course at the Kingsmill Resort.

His love life notwithstanding, this has been a difficult year for Murphy, 35. After a career-best tie for sixth at the season-opening Sony Open, he missed the cut in 20 of his next 29 events and is 156th on the money list with $189,425.

"I have had a lot of distractions this year," Murphy said. "I feel like I had more forest fires going than the state of Montana there for a while, but most of them have been put out now. I feel like I am playing some of my best golf right now and I am not really worried about the next month or two months or three months."

Those distractions included legal proceedings that ended the first week of September, the death of his grandmother two weeks later and a flood that ruined half of his house.

"Most of that stuff, it is all behind me now," said Murphy, a New Mexico resident. "That is kind of why I am excited about playing golf again, because it has been distracting to come out and try and play your best golf with all this stuff going on off the golf course."

Pate, the only multiple winner among the leaders, had sole possession of the top spot before bogeying his closing hole. A win this week would put him in position to participate in the lucrative Tour Championship.

"I've not had one good week with the putter this year. I've had two good rounds," said Pate. "It's not hard to get motivated. There is no sense of panic, I've been here before."

Like Murphy, Hayes and Beckman played bogey-free. Damron, who did not have a practice round this week, made seven birdies to offset a pair of bogeys.

"Traditionally I've had a lot of trouble reading putts here," Damron said. "Today, every putt seemed to do what I thought it would do."

Damron needed only 26 putts, the last a 12-footer for birdie on the 18th hole, but said he couldn't explain why he putted so much better, or why he played so well after not even getting in a practice round.

"I just kind of saw it and went with it," he said.

Putting was also the key for Beckman.

"I putted awesome," Beckman said after his 23-putt round, which included 30-footers for birdie three holes apart on the front side. "Basically I was trying to two-putt both of them, and they went in. Sometimes when you don't try to make them you make them."

Hayes, who played with Pate, was 1-under at the turn before hitting a 3-iron close on No. 2, beginning a stretch of four birdies in six holes.

"It was nice to at least have somebody that I can watch make some putts and know that it could be done," Hayes said. "Sometimes you wonder if it can be done if the guy you are playing with isn't doing it."

Two-time champion David Duval opened with a 1-under 70 and was four strokes behind the leaders. Last week, he made a successful comeback from a back injury and ended an 18-month title drought at the Buick Challenge.

Defending champion Notah Begay III struggled to a 76 and was tied for 142nd in the 154-player field. Last year, he birdied the final two holes in regulation before parring the second playoff hole to defeat Tom Byrum.