Ka'upulehu-Kona, HI (Sports Network) - David Frost fired a 7-under 65 on Friday to grab a one-shot lead after the first round of the season- opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai.
Frost, who recorded two of his three career Champions Tour wins last season, picked up three birdies without a bogey on his outward nine at Hualalai Golf Course to jump into sole possession of the top spot.
"I finished up 2012 by birdeing the last hole and I birdied the first hole this year so I couldn't have wished for a better start," the South African said in a post-round TV interview.
Reigning Charles Schwab Cup champion Tom Lehman, Fred Couples, John Cook, Willie Wood, Kirk Triplett and Tom Kite are knotted in second place at 6-under 66.
"That was really tight last year," said Lehman, who won the final tournament of 2012 to capture his second straight Charles Schwab Cup. "It came right down to the final tournament ... There are so many strong players out here, so many great players, that you have to keep on working, keep on improving."
John Huston, Russ Cochran and Kenny Perry are tied for eighth at minus-5.
Ten-time PGA Tour victor Steve Elkington carded a 4-under in his Champions Tour debut on Friday. The Australian, who turned 50 in December, is tied with 2010 Charles Schwab Cup winner Bernhard Langer, Jay Haas and Corey Pavin.
Langer, paired with Lehman in the final group, rolled home a birdie putt on the par-4 18th to join the others in 11th place.
Tom Watson, who was recently named the 2014 U.S. Ryder Cup captain, is tied for 15th place with six others, including Fred Funk, at minus-3.
Defending champion Dan Forsman had an up-and-down round, which featured three birdies and four bogeys, and finished 18 holes at 1-over -- good for a 34th- place tie.
As Frost alluded, he opened his 2013 campaign with a birdie and continued the hot start by turning the trick again on Nos. 4 and 6. He followed that run with an eagle on the par-5 seventh before taking his first misstep of the day with a bogey on No. 8.
On his outward nine, Frost picked up birdies on the 10th and the 12th, but he still trailed Kite, Triplett and Wood -- all of whom were in the clubhouse at 6-under.
Frost then gained the lead at minus-7 when he secured another birdie on No. 16 and closed his round with a pair of pars.
NOTES: This is the first of 26 official events in the season-long competition for the Charles Schwab Cup ... The field is comprised of players who have won a Champions Tour major championship within the last five seasons or a Champions Tour co-sponsored and approved tournament in the last two years, plus sponsor exemptions ... Last year, Forsman carded rounds of 67-65-69 to earn a two-stroke win over Jay Don Blake.
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