CHAMPIONS

• Morse leads by one at Q-School

  
  

  Coral Springs, FL (Sports Network) - John Morse posted a five-under 67 Tuesday to take a one-shot lead after the opening round of the Champions Tour National Qualifying Tournament.

  Morse split time between the PGA and Nationwide Tours in 2008 before playing in his first Champions Tour event at the Principal Charity Classic.

  Mark W.

  Johnson, the 2005 Toshiba Seniors Classic winner, and Steve Thomas share second place at minus-four at the TPC at Eagle Trace.

  Robert Thompson is alone in fourth at three-under-par 69, while Kirk Hanefeld and Mike San Filippo are tied for fifth at two-under 70.

  Morse opened with a bogey on the first, but rebounded with birdies at four and six.

  He turned in minus-one, then moved up the leaderboard with consecutive birdies at 10 and 11.

  The 50-year-old, who won once on the PGA and Nationwide Tours, parred five in a row from the 12th. Morse then birdied the 17th and 18th to grab first place after the first of four rounds.

  Johnson played the back nine first. He notched two birdies and two bogeys over his first seven holes. He drained back-to-back birdie tries from the 17th and again from the fourth to move to minus-four.

  After a bogey at six, Johnson bounced back to birdie the seventh.

  Thomas birdied three of the first five holes, but faltered to a bogey at six. He recovered that lost stroke with a birdie on the eighth. Thomas parred nine of the last 10 holes to go with a birdie on 15 that got him to minus-four.

  Three former winners on the PGA Tour - Jay Don Blake, David Ogrin and Russ Cochran - headline a group tied at one-under-par 71. They were joined there by Jon Fiedler, Jim Chancey, Juan Quiros, Jack Ferenz, Mitch Adams and Mark Balen.

  James Mason and Ron Streck, both former winners on the Champions Tour, are among 10 players tied at even-par 72.

  11/18 16:11:01 ET