DiMarco, who has never won a PGA event, shot a 6-under-par 66, one stroke better than Brian Kamm, Doug Barron and Chris Perry, who also have never won on tour. They were one shot ahead of Phil Tataurangi, Sandy Lyle, and Peter Jacobsen.

Mark Pfeil, Mike Hulbert and Bruce Fleisher were among a dozen players at 69. Defending champion Gabriel Hjerstedt of Sweden finished at 73.

DiMarco was coming off a ninth-place finish last week in the Canadian Open that was oh-so-important. It vaulted him into the top 125 on the money list and, with only six tournaments remaining, likely secured his PGA card for 1999.

"Last week really helped," said DiMarco, who birdied No. 15 to go to 7-under, then gave the shot right back on the next hole. "Today, a lot of the pressure of the whole year is off. I just went out and played. It was nice to go out and just relax."

Kamm and Perry had nearly identical rounds. Each nailed four straight birdies on the front nine, and each faltered with bogeys at the par-4 No. 10.

For Perry, it was the continuation of something good -- he tied for third in the Greater Milwaukee Open two weeks ago. But an ugly double bogey to start the back nine -- his drive landed in a water hazard -- nearly rattled him.

"As I'm walking up to the tee on 11, I said, 'Don't get frustrated here. Don't get down. Let's just make a good swing,"' said Perry, who finished second here a year ago. "And I hit a great drive."

Barron, in his second year on tour, birdied his final hole, the par-4 No. 9, to gain a share of second. It was an uplifting day for a guy who has battled anxiety and depression for the past four years.

"If I just hang in there, I'll be up there and have a chance to win," said Barron, who appeared in only one PGA tournament in 1997. "It's the first round. You just go out there and freewheel it. Obviously, I know I'm playing well, so all I've got to do is stay in the moment. Good things have been happening to me lately."

Good things were happening to Jim Furyk, too, when play started early Thursday morning on a picture-perfect, late-summer day. Furyk shot out to 7-under-par on his first 13 holes and appeared on the way to the first-round lead.

Then he saw some water on the back nine and his game went splish-splashing away. His drives at Nos. 15 and 18 landed in water traps and he double-bogeyed each hole to plummet from the top of the leaderboard to four shots behind DiMarco at 70.

"Two swings today and I shoot 66,"said Furyk, who also bogeyed the par-3 No. 14. "There's nothing you can do. I'm obviously upset about it. It was a bad finish to the day. I had it going."

Stewart Cink didn't. Cink, who led this tournament going into the final round a year ago before faltering to 12th, shot a 2-over 74.

"I'm pretty disappointed," said Cink, who had four bogeys and one double bogey. "I played terrible today. I feel like I don't belong out here. I put myself in great position to have to play good tomorrow just to make the cut.

"I can play good on this course, I know I can. My game's not really been jelling lately, and I need it to jell soon. Like tomorrow."

First Round Scores