RENO, August 2, 2013 (AFP) - James Driscoll and Gary Woodland both notched 14 points to share second place, while Australian Greg Chalmers was alone in fourth on 13 points.
Rather than counting strokes, the Modified Stableford scoring system awards eight points for double eagles, five for eagles, two for birdies, zero for pars and subtracts one point for bogeys and three points for double bogey or worse.
"Last year I played pretty good here," said Teater. "I think Friday's round wasn't very good, but I played good Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday and finished seventh. So you can make a lot of moves in one round. So I got a good start, and hopefully I can keep it going."
Australian Stuart Appleby and Colt Knost both totaled 12, while 2008 Masters champion Trevor Immelman, Bud Cauley, Justin Bolli, David Mathis and Dean Wilson all had 10.
Woodland, the 2011 Transitions Championship winner, had taken the early lead with seven birdies in a bogey-free round, but Teater overtook him.
The 34-year-old highlighted his opening round and pushed his total to 13 with an eagle at the par-five eighth, then birdied his last hole to overtake Woodland.
- Leading first-round scores on Thursday in the US PGA Tour Reno-Tahoe Open (USA unless noted, scores based on Modified Stableford points system):
15 points - Josh Teater
14 - Gary Woodland, James Driscoll
13 - Greg Chalmers (AUS)
12 - Stuart Appleby (AUS), Colt Knost
10 - Trevor Immelman (RSA), Bud Cauley, Justin Bolli, David Mathis, Dean Wilson
9 - Chris Williams, Ricky Barnes, Mark Wilson, Kevin Stadler
8 - Brandt Jobe, Scott McCarron, Will Claxton, Andres Romero (ARG)
7 - Robert Streb, Skip Kendall, Woody Austin, Ted Potter, Brendon Todd, James Hahn, Nathan Green (AUS)
(Points awarded: 8 for double eagle, 5 for eagle, 2 for birdie, 0 for par, -1 for bogey and -3 for double bogey or worse)