Jean Zedlitz, benefiting from a bit of tinkering with her golf swing, opened with a 4-under-par 68 today to join Michele Redman in the lead of the Wegmans Rochester International.

"It's now all starting to come together," said Zedlitz, who until recent weeks had fared poorly on tour since 1995. "If you get stuck in a rut, you lose confidence. ... Things are looking up right now."

Meg Mallon, Michelle McGann and Canada's Dawn Coe-Jones were among 10 players two shots off the pace at 2-under. One shot further back on the crowded leaderboard were 17 players, notably Dale Eggeling.

In January, Zedlitz said she overcame her tendency to "do things on my own" and sought out a golf instructor. The result: smoother iron play, a renewed faith in her ability and hot spells with her putter.

She two-putted from 33 feet for an opening bogey at the tree-lined Locust Hill course, but her touch on the greens was good from then on. She dropped a 32-foot birdie putt on No. 14 and a 21-foot eagle putt on No. 17.

Zedlitz, a native of Pleasanton, Calif., had a career-best third-place finish as a rookie in 1993. She fell away badly in 1996, winning just $1,806, and her nonexempt status this year means she must either qualify for tournaments or join a waiting list to fill a vacant slot.

There are signs of progress at last. Last week, she tied for 30th in the U.S. Women's Open.

Redman, who joined the tour in 1992, said her game has improved markedly since she recruited a sports therapist three years ago. She won the JAL Big Apple Classic in 1997 and has seven top-20 finishes this year.

"I'm a lot nicer to myself," Redman said. "This isn't a game where you can get down on yourself. I really think working on the mental part of the game, that's where it was at for me."

Redman posted three straight birdies on the front nine, sinking putts from 6, 7 and 25 feet. A 10-foot birdie putt on No. 17 gave her an outright lead before she bogeyed the last hole.

Defending champion Rosie Jones shot a 3-over 75 and South Korean Se Ri Pak finished at 5-over.

The 23-year-old tournament's main sponsor is Wegmans, a regional grocery store chain that hiked the purse from $700,000 to $1 million this year to lure marquee players like Australia's Karrie Webb, who shot a 75.