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Patrons walk to the green on the fifth hole during the first round of the PGA TOUR Champions Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf at Big Cedar Lodge on April 26 in Ridgedale, Missouri.Matt Sullivan/Getty Images

Tom Pernice Jr. and Scott Hoch teamed to shoot a nine-under 62 on Friday in best-ball play at Ozarks National to take the first-round lead in the PGA Tour Champions’ Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf.

The teams of Shaun Micheel-Loren Roberts, Ken Tanigawa-Gene Sauers and Roger Chapman-David Frost were a stroke back.

Pernice and Hoch had five straight birdies in the middle of the round.

“I got going early and I just kept filling it up and hitting some good shots,” Hoch said. “I told him early, I said, ‘Hey, I’ll get the front, you get the back,’ and that’s kind of what happened.”

The 59-year-old Pernice has five victories on the 50-and-older tour. The 63-year-old Hoch has three senior victories.

“It’s just nice to come out here and play well,” Pernice said. “It’s nice to get off to a good start. I think it’s important to get off to a good start in this format and to get this course done, and now we can go over and play the same greens on the par-three two days in a row.”

Micheel-Roberts and Chapman-Frost shot 63 at Ozarks National. Tanigawa-Sauers had an eight-under 46 on the Top of the Rock par-three course, playing the first nine holes on the nine-hole layout in modified alternate shot and the second nine in best ball.

“It’s a lot of fun for me,” Tanigawa said. “It’s something we don’t play, so to have the opportunity to have a partner like Gene, it sure makes it a lot easier.”

The team will rotate courses at Big Cedar Lodge on Saturday, then all play the final round on Sunday on the par-three course.

Defending champions Paul Broadhurst and Kirk Triplett had a four-under 50 on the par-three layout.

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