RIO GRANDE, March 7, 2014 (AFP) - Stuard, an American who was second at the 2010 and 2013 Mayakoba Classic in Mexico, began off the 10th tee and fired seven birdies against a lone bogey on day one of the $3.5 million event.
"The wind is blowing pretty good out there, so I hit some good shots. I kept it in play nice off the tee, didn't get in much trouble, and only made the one bogey," said Stuard.
"I've just been playing pretty solid. I putted really good to start off the year and then kind of last few weeks not quite as good and then good today."
Stuard began a run of three birdies in a row at the par-3 11th and added birdies at the par-5 15th and 18th holes. He birdied the par-5 second and par-4 third but took a bogey at the sixth before parring to the clubhouse.
New Zealand's Danny Lee and American Jason Gore shared second on 67 with South Korea's Y.E. Yang, the 2009 PGA Championship winner, and Americans Ricky Barnes, Tim Petrovic, William McGirt, Chesson Hadley, Eric Axley and Ben Martin another stroke off the pace.
Most of the world's top players are competing at this week's World Golf Championships Cadillac Championship at Doral in Miami.
Japan's Ryo Ishikawa, the 2012 Puerto Rico runner-up, opened with a 70 in Rio Grande.
Ishikawa began with a birdie at the 10th, took a bogey at the par-3 11th but then answered with birdies at 14 and 15.
Ishikawa also had bogeys at the first and fifth, but responded with a birdie each time on the next hole.
Leading scores on Thursday after the first round of the $3.5 million US PGA Puerto Rico Open (par 72, USA unless noted):
66 - Brian Stuard
67 - Jason Gore, Danny Lee (NZL)
68 - Tim Petrovic, Ricky Barnes, Chesson Hadley, William McGirt, Yang Yong-Eun (KOR), Eric Axley, Ben Martin
69 - Richard Lee, Cameron Beckman, James Driscoll, Alex Cejka (GER), Steven Bowditch (AUS), Jonathan Byrd, George McNeill, Bud Cauley, Rafael Cabrera Bello (ESP), Chris Smith, Tyrone Van Aswegan (RSA), Edward Loar, John Rollins, Greg Owen (ENG), Jesper Parnevik (SWE), Jerry Kelly, Alvaro Quiros (ESP), Jim Herman, Ryan Sullivan, Wes Roach, Robert Streb