Steele leads by one after opening round at Canadian Open

OAKVILLE, Ontario, July 25 (UPI) -- Brendan Steele Thursday turned in his best 18-hole score since February in grabbing a one-shot lead after one round of the Canadian Open.

Steele shot a 7-under 65 at the Glen Abbey Golf Club on a day that saw 68 players break par. He has missed the cut in seven of his last 10 tournaments and stands 95th on the FedEx Cup points list. Only the top 125 on that list earn a spot in the PGA Tour playoffs, which are less than a month away.

Matt Kuchar, one of three multiple winners on the tour this year, shared second place at 66 with Scott Gardiner and Scott Brown.

Hunter Mahan, who played in the final group last Sunday at the British Open and eventually finished in a tie for ninth, was tied for fifth with David Lingmerth at 67.

Bubba Watson and Trevor Immelman, both former winners at the Masters, were part of the large group at 68. Defending champion Scott Piercy had a 71.

Steele played the back nine first on Thursday and after making the turn ran off five birdies in a seven-hole stretch. He had not shot a 65 since posting that score two days in a row at the Phoenix Open, where he finished tied for sixth in what has been his best showing of the year.

His only tour victory came two years ago at the Texas Open.