Kent Jones recovered from a tee shot in the rough to birdie the 18th hole yesterday for a 7-under 65, giving him a share of the lead with rookie Michael Letzig in the first round of the Ginn sur Mer Classic in Palm Coast, Fla., the next-to-last official even on the PGA Tour.

They had a two-shot margin over Ryan Palmer, who birdied three of his first five holes and eased his way to a 67.

Jones and Letzig played college golf at New Mexico a decade apart, but that's where the similarities end.

Letzig, who had never played a PGA Tour event in his life until earning his card last year through the Nationwide Tour, is 109th on the money list and is in good shape to keep his job for next year.

Jones has spent most of his 10-year career around the 125th spot on the money list -- the cutoff for keeping his card -- and he arrived at the Ginn Ocean Hammock Resort at No. 179.

He hacked out of waist-high native grass with a 5-iron into a fairway bunker on the par-5 18th hole, then hit 6-iron into 6 feet for an unlikely birdie that gave him a share of the lead.

"That was my best round of the year, but that's not saying much," Jones said.

Other tournaments

• Charles Schwab Cup Championship: Nick Price made a 25-foot putt on the 18th hole to pull even with David Eger at 6-under 66 atop the leader board at the opening round in Sonoma, Calif. Battling intermittent rains that are expected to get a lot worse on the weekend, Price and Eger took a one-stroke lead over Mike Goodes in the Champions Tour's season-ending event.

• Volvo Masters: Soren Kjeldsen of Denmark shot a 6-under 65 for a three-stroke lead after the first round, and Lee Westwood (70) surged ahead in the chase for the Order of Merit title at Sotogrande, Spain. Sergio Garcia finished with a 68 to finish second on a windy day at Valderrama. Westwood was one of only six players to finish under par, three strokes ahead of Order of Merit leader Robert Karlsson and long shot Miguel Angel Jimenez.