Bernhard Langer fired a one under par 69 to lie in a share of fourth place after the opening round of the US Senior Open Championship at Sahalee Country Club.
The German, who is chasing back-to-back Senior Major wins following his success in The Senior Open Championship presented by MasterCard last week, is three shots behind leader Bruce Vaughan of America.
Vaughan, the 2008 Senior Open Champion, posted a four under par 66 for a two shot advantage over compatriots Loren Roberts and amateur Tim Jackson.
Langer is in a group a shot further back along with Mark Calcavecchia, Langer, Joe Ozaki, Michael Allen and Tom Lehman. Calcavecchia and Langer were the only two golfers to break par in the afternoon groups.
Former Ryder Cup Captain Langer said he was satisfied with the way he battled both the course and jetlag after his journey from Carnoustie to Seattle.
“It wasn't easy out there,” he said. “The pins are tucked away and the greens are firm so you've got to allow for a lot of run.
“If you hit it on to the green you're going to have a breaking putt and it's the type of course you want to hit the middle of the green because you then have some kind of putt, no matter where the pin is. So from the centre you have a reasonable putt but it's hard to get to the centre of the green.
“It's about 2 a.m. for my body right now and I feel it. I forced myself to stay in bed but I was up around 6am but I was up, you know, several times before that, just looking at the ceiling. It should be better tomorrow - I should feel physically better in the morning hopefully.”
Tom Watson and local Seattle favourite Fred Couples both carded level par rounds of 70 for a share of ninth place, while European Senior Tour Members Eduardo Romero (71) and Peter Senior (73) are in a share of 13th and 29th place respectively.
