Chopra starts with 66, Atwal shoots 68 in US

LAS VEGAS: Arjun Atwal, needing some solid finishes in the closing stages of the PGA Tour for 2007, opened with a modest 68 in a low scoring first round at the Frys.com Open in the US.

He was lying tied 48th, while Indo-Swede Daniel Chopra, a former winner in Asia and India, carded a six-66 to share 16th place, three behind co-leaders Bob May and Jason Gore.

Atwal started solidly with birdies on second, fourth and ninth to be three-under at the turn. The bogey on the 11th was his first error of the day, but he quickly recovered with a birdie on 12th and then followed with yet another birdie, his fifth of the day on 17th.

However he closed with a bogey on 18th and finished with a 68 at the TPC, the Canyons.

The tournament is played on two courses, the other one being TPC, Summerlin.

Atwal is 211th in the Money List and needs to get into the top-125 for a full card for 2008 and inside 150 for a limited exemption.

South Korea's Kevin Na shot a 67, while Australians Jarrod Lyle and Andrew Buckle, both needing good finishes in the season-closing events, shot a 70 and 72 to be well down the leaderboard.

May, who has often suffered on account of back problems, is on a comeback trail after years of injury issues. May shot a 9-under 63 at TPC Summerlin to top the leaderboard in the Frys.com Open. Gore finished with an 8-under 63 on the nearby par-71 TPC The Canyons.

All the golfers will tee off for the final two rounds this weekend at Summerlin.