TUCSON, Ariz. – Jerry Smith had a hole-in-one and shot a 7-under 65 on Friday to take the first-round lead in the Champions Tour’s inaugural Tucson Conquistadores Classic.

The 50-year-old Smith used a 5-iron on the 212-yard seventh hole – his 16th hole of the day – on Tucson National’s Catalina Course.

“I hit a 5 and cut it just a little bit back into the wind,” Smith said. “I think that hole played 212, but just wanted to fly to about 195, maybe. In the air, it did look really good. I really didn’t have any belief that it could go in for a one, but once it hit the green, it started rolling back there. A lot of friends that were following around were up at the green and they kind of gave the old cheer and I did see it disappear.”

He played the final nine holes in 6-under 30, making birdies on Nos. 2, 3, 6 and 8.

“I can’t be happier, obviously, for the way it turned out,” Smith said. “Just kind of got the right bounces and stayed out of trouble and I really did putt well the entire day.

Colin Montgomerie, David Frost, Steve Pate and Marco Dawson were tied for second at 67.

Kirk Triplett, the winner of the PGA Tour’s final Tucson Open in 2006 at Tucson National, was three strokes back at 68 along with Bart Bryant and Corey Pavin. Bryant is coming off a playoff loss to Lee Janzen last month in Naples, Florida.

Montgomerie noted the large galleries,

“I thought it was fantastic, I really did, and it proves that this area is in need of professional golf,” Montgomerie said. “It’s a shame that the Tucson Open has gone off the PGA Tour. I think it’s fantastic that the crowds are more like a PGA Tour event than anything else, never mind a Champions Tour event. All credit to everybody for putting this together on short notice.”

Bernhard Langer opened with a 69, so did Canada’s Stephen Ames.

Jesper Parnevik had a 71 in his Champions Tour debut. The five-time PGA Tour winner turned 50 on March 7. He missed the cut two weeks ago in the PGA Tour’s Puerto Rico Open after injuring his back in a fall during a practice round.

Fred Couples and Tom Lehman shot 72, and Tom Watson had a 76.

Based in Scottsdale, Smith earned fully exempt status on the 50-and-over tour in November with a tie for third at Q-school. He won the Asian Tour’s 1998 Guam Open and made 153 PGA Tour starts.

“Things have gone as well as I really could have expected this year,” Smith said. “It’s not like I’ve been doing anything different or working harder or working out or anything special. Just really been trying to focus on doing some of the same things just over and over every day, whether it’s with my putting or my routine with my full swings.”

NAPLES, Fla. – Lee Janzen had a good feeling about his 8-foot putt on the No. 18 hole.

Janzen made the putt, then topped Bart Bryant in a playoff to win the ACE Group Classic on Sunday at TwinEagles Golf Club.

“I was like I have to make birdie here to get in a playoff, or I make a par and I don’t and I’ll just go back to the drawing board and work harder on my putting because I had some putts I could have made that would have made a difference,” Janzen said. “But there was a peace that to me it didn’t matter whether I won or not.”

Bryant fought his way back into contention when he shot a 10-under 62 Sunday, tying a course record while Janzen had a 5-under 67.

Both were 16 under in regulation play.

However, Bryant struggled in the playoff. After a short drive, he had 178 yards to go on the first playoff hole, No. 18. His second shot hit the railroad ties before bouncing back into the water.

“Well, honestly, where I messed up was my drive,” he said. “I kind of hit just a terrible little fade out there, so I lost 20, 30 yards. So now I have a longer yardage and shooting more across the water.

“Actually, the second shot I felt like I hit pretty good, I just left it a couple yards right. I thought I had enough, I thought I took enough club that even if I pushed it, I was going to carry the water.

“I think the wind had changed just a little bit from the first time played it and was just enough. So I hit a bad drive, caught a little bit of a bad lie, hit it a little right and it all equals in the water.”

Janzen, with 164 yards to go, put his approach shot on the green. He then two-putted for the victory.

“Once he hit his shot, I was, you know, thinking about hitting it to the pin, being aggressive, but once he hit his shot, I calculated where’s the best place to be to make a 4?,” Janzen said. “Long was no good.

“If I brought long into play and went left at all, it goes down left of the green and that’s an extremely hard chip, so I was very content to be short and left. I just had to be disciplined enough to aim it left at the front of the green and hit it there, so that’s what I did with a 7 iron.”

Janzen, the U.S. Open champion in 1993 and 1998, hadn’t won an individual tournament for more than 16 years, spanning 413 starts.

“I work on my game in a certain way so I’m going to do the best I can on every shot and I don’t need to worry about what people think, whether I hit a good shot or a bad shot,” Janzen said. “I used to have a terrible temper and threw clubs and carried on.

“That was really the breakthrough was to realize I was only doing that because I was too worried about what other people thought about my golf game, so I felt like I had to get mad to show them that I was better than that, which was just ridiculous.”

The tournament also was emotional for Bryant, who had to compose himself during a TV interview after he finished his 54th hole. His mother attended her first tournament since her husband died in May.

“I really thought about it at the beginning of the week how cool it would be if Brad or I could pull something off and just couldn’t quite get it done,” he said. “I hate to say it, there might have been a little bit when you get done and ready to go in a playoff, you don’t want to get emotional, you need to get tough and ready to go to a playoff. I think I lost a little bit of that, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”

Colin Montgomerie entered the day at 12 under and with a one-shot lead. He opened with a birdie but then alternated birdies and bogeys on Nos. 10-13. He also bogeyed No. 18 to fall into fifth place.

Esteban Toledo, who shot a 6-under 66 Sunday, finished third at 14 under.

Paul Goydos, the champion last week at The Allianz Championship, finished 7 under.

Kirk Triplett, the defending ACE Group Classic champion, finished 2 under after going 68-72-74.

Bernhard Langer, who was at 7 under, withdrew from the tournament and returned home to Boca Raton to be with daughter Christina. She had back surgery five weeks earlier.

Stephen Ames emerged as the top Canadian, shooting 4-under 212 to tie for 10th place. Rod Spittle finished tied for 25th (3-under) while Jim Rutledge tied for 56th (3-over).

NAPLES, Fla. – Colin Montgomerie has fond memories of his last showdown with Lee Janzen.

He’s hoping for a repeat.

Montgomerie overcame a double bogey to shoot his second straight 6-under 66, holding onto a one-stroke lead over Janzen after two rounds of the ACE Group Classic at TwinEagles Golf Club on Saturday.

Montgomerie birdied four of his last six holes and is 12-under 132 for the tournament. Lee Janzen also had a double bogey but shot a 7-under 65 and is one back at 11 under.

In 1993, Montgomerie and Janzen squared off in the Ryder Cup in England.

“The singles is different,” Montgomerie said. “It’s very much a 1-on-1. I managed to beat him 1-up. I hope to stay one ahead.”

In the 1997 Ryder Cup at Valderrama, Janzen recalls running besides Montgomerie while he was being cheered by the European fans. Janzen took off his hat and waved in appreciation.

“Some guy yelled out, `We’re not cheering for you, Janzen,’ which was quite funny,” he said. “He got a good laugh out of that reminiscing.”

Esteban Toledo and Scott Dunlap are at 8-under 136. Three other players are at 7 under, including Bernhard Langer, who won five tournaments in 2014 as well as 18 top-10 finishes.

“A wee bit of gap,” Montgomerie said.

Montgomerie birdied Nos. 2, 3, 6 and 7 before faltering for a double bogey on No. 9. He pushed his second shot into a bunker. His chip then ran back down the hill. He chipped to within 4 feet but missed the putt.

Janzen found trouble on the seventh hole. He birdied his first three holes as well as Nos. 6, 9, 12, 13, 16 and 17.

“Same things, I mean, you can look at his caliber and his ability and what he did on 9, he probably wants to kick himself, just like I did on No. 7,” Janzen said. “I actually had a chance to make a par.”

Added Montgomerie: “He threw in one early on the seventh and I gave him one back at the ninth and yet we both scored 66, 65. So good scoring and it’s good that’s you’re spurred on by someone, especially your playing partner, someone you respect.”

Montgomerie birdied four of his last six holes. On No. 17, he had a decision to make. He chose to lay up and credited that with getting a birdie.

“It says maybe I’m more patient,” he said. “Maybe I’m maturing, mellowing. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not.”

Paul Goydos, who won The Allianz Championship last week in Boca Raton, Fla., is at 5-under after a 70.

Kirk Triplett, the 2014 ACE Group Classic victor, is at 4-under after a 72.

NAPLES, Fla. – Colin Montgomerie had five birdies in an eight-hole stretch on the back nine Friday, shooting a 6-under 66 for a one-shot lead after one round of the Champions Tour’s ACE Group Classic.

Montgomerie is followed by Tommy Armour III, who shot a 67 at TwinEagles Golf Club. Defending champion Kirk Triplett and Lee Janzen are at 68.

Montgomerie began his day with a 40-foot birdie putt. On the back nine, he birdied Nos. 10, 12, 13, 16 and 17.

Armour had four putts of more than 12 feet, including a 40-footer on No. 6 for one of his six birdies. He had a bogey on No. 14. Armour tied for sixth last week at the Allianz Championship in Boca Raton, Florida.

Paul Goydos, last week’s winner, was three shots back. Bernhard Langer, who had five victories last season, is five behind.

Canadians Stephen Ames and Rod Spittle both opened with 71s for a share of 17th spot Friday.  Jim Rutledge (77) was 5 over.

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Paul Goydos closed with a birdie for a 3-under 69 and a one-stroke victory over Gene Sauers on Sunday in the Champions Tour’s Allianz Championship.

Goydos chipped to a foot from behind the par-5 18th green and tapped in for his second victory in 12 career starts of the 50-and-over tour. He won twice in 507 starts on the PGA Tour.

“Statistics are a wonderful predictor of the past,” Goydos said. “Part of it is experience and maturity. If I played like I did today 10 years ago, I don’t think there’s any way I would have won this tournament. I didn’t have my best game, but I got it around.”

On a wild day at Broken Sound where nine players had a share of the lead at some point, Goydos finished at 12-under 204 to claim the $255,000 first prize. He chipped in for an unlikely birdie at the difficult ninth and stayed atop the leaderboard the rest of the day.

“It was a shootout without great scores,” Goydos said. “The course played tough today.”

Sauers birdied his final two holes for a 67. It was his fourth runner-up finish on the Champions Tour, including a playoff loss to Colin Montgomerie last year in the U.S Senior Open.

“I’ve lost the last five playoffs I’ve played in. I was hoping to break that streak,” Sauers said. “But I’m ecstatic with the way I played.”

Fred Funk chipped in for eagle on the final hole to tie for third at 10 under with John Huston, playing for the first time in 18 months because of a neck injury, and 2014 winner Michael Allen. Funk and Huston shot 66, and Allen had a 67.

Jose Coceres, who started the day nine shots back in 45th place, played his first 16 holes in 10 under to tie Goydos for the lead. But Coceres bogeyed his 17th hole and finished sixth after a 63. The biggest comeback in Champions Tour history was when Jay Sigel rallied from 10 back to win the 1994 GTE West Classic.

Canada’s Rod Spittle led by two shots at 11 under until he made a 10 on the par-5 sixth.

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Bart Bryant holed out with a 6-iron from 195 yards on the par-5 18th hole Saturday for the first double eagle on the Champions Tour since 2010, giving him a share of the second-round lead in the Allianz Championship at Broken Sound.

Bryant had bogeyed four of his previous seven holes to fall off the pace before his second shot at the 509-yard 18th hole landed on the front of the green and rolled into the hole for his first career albatross.

Playing in the final group, Bryant finished with a 3-under 69 to join Paul Goydos, Tom Pernice Jr. and Canada’s Rod Spittle atop the leader board at 9-under 135. Spittle had a 66, and Goydos and Pernice shot 69.

“I was going to hit a 5-iron, but I thought if I got the 6-iron high enough it would just clear the bunker,” Bryant said. “I never saw it go in. That sure made up for a lot of bad shots.”

Keith Fergus was the last player to make a double eagle on the 50-and-over tour, accomplishing the rare feat in the 2010 SAS Championship. After Bryant’s heroics, Goydos and Pernice made birdies at the 18th hole to make it a quartet at 9 under.

“It was cool to see, but it was kind of eerie afterward,” Goydos said. “It kind of took the air out of the tournament. It was like a bomb got off and we got the crater.”

Spittle, who had to make a 5-foot par putt on the 72nd hole of Q-school last fall to keep his card, birdied five of his first seven holes to charge into contention. His lone blemish was a bogey at the par-5 11th. “I’ll save the heroics for tomorrow,” Spittle said.

Reigning player of the year Bernhard Langer had a 70 to reach 7 under. He was tied for fifth with Olin Browne (67), Guy Boros (68) and Mark Brooks (69).

Twelve players were within three shots of the lead. Interestingly, even though Bryant made a double eagle on the last hole to move into a first-place tie, he will tee off in the next-to-last group in the final round.

Stephen Ames is tied for 24th, six-shots off the lead at 3-under.

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Tom Pernice Jr. closed with a double bogey for a 6-under 66 and a share of the first-round lead Friday in the Allianz Championship with Paul Goydos and Bart Bryant.

Pernice, second behind Rocco Mediate two years ago at Broken Sound, hooked his drive into the water on the par-4 ninth. After a drop, he hit a 3-wood short of the green and missed a 9-foot putt. The 429-yard ninth was the most difficult hole Friday, playing to an average of 4.642 in windy conditions.

“It’s one of those things where you have to step up and hit a shot, and I wasn’t able to pull it off,” said Pernice, a two-time winner last year on the Champions Tour. “Not much you can do about it.”

Bryant, playing alongside Pernice, had four birdies and an eagle as he tries to win for the second time on the Champions Tour. Goydos, a winner last year in his first season on the 50-and-over tour, had seven birdies and a bogey and saved par a half-dozen times.

“I probably turned a 69 or a 70 into a 66,” Goydos said. “That’s what I have to do to be successful out here.

Bernhard Langer was a stroke back along with Fred Funk and Tom Byrum, who got into the field as an alternate. Langer, the reigning player of the year, won the 2010 event and has three other top-three finishes at Broken Sound in the last six years. He lives 15 minutes from the course.

Peter Jacobson chipped in for eagle at the 18th hole for a 68. He was tied with Brad Bryant (Bart’s brother), Grant Waite, Mark Brooks, Loren Roberts and Roger Chapman. Waite is returning to competition after spending the last six years as an instructor to several PGA Tour players.

Canada’s Rod Spittle had a 69.

Defending champion Michael Allen had a 70, 10 shots higher than his opening round last year.

Stephen Ames and Jim Rutledge both carded 74s.

Nolan Henke had a 77 in his Champions Tour debut. The three-time PGA Tour winner turned 50 in November.

KAUPULEHU-KONA, Hawaii – Miguel Angel Jimenez rallied to win the Champions Tour’s season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship, birdieing six of the final nine holes Sunday for a one-stroke victory over Mark O’Meara.

The Spaniard closed with a 6-under 66 for his second victory in three career starts on the 50-and-over tour. He broke a tie with O’Meara with a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-3 17th.

“It was uphill against the grain and into the wind,” said Jimenez, a 21-time winner on the European Tour. “I knew I had to hit it hard.”

Jimenez won the Greater Gwinnett Championship last year, a week after finishing fourth in the Masters. In his other Champions Tour start, he tied for eighth in the Senior British Open in July. In May, he won the Spanish Open at 50 years, 133 days to break his own record as the oldest European Tour champion.

Jimenez finished at 17-under 199 at Hualalai Golf Club. He played the 12 par 5s in 12 under with an eagle and 10 birdies.

After making two birdies and a double bogey on the front nine, he birdied Nos. 10, 11, 13-15 and 17 and closed with a two-putt par.

O’Meara shot a 64. The two-time Champions Tour winner finished second for the 15th time.

“People remember the winner, not second place,” O’Meara said. “I’m disappointed, but Miguel played well when he had to.”

Fred Couples was third at 14 under, following his second-round 64 with a 66. Rocco Mediate, tied with Jimenez for the second-round lead, had a 70 to finish fourth at 13 under.

The 40-player field featured major champions from the last five years, other tournament winners in the last two seasons and sponsor invitees.

KAUPULEHU-KONA, Hawaii – Miguel Angel Jimenez shot an 8-under 64 in windy conditions Saturday for a share of the lead with Rocco Mediate in the Champions Tour’s season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship.

Jimenez had nine birdies and a closing bogey to match Mediate at 11-under 133 at Hualalai Golf Club. Mediate, the first-round leader after a 66, had a bogey-free 67.

Jimenez is making his third Champions Tour start. The Spaniard won the Greater Gwinnett Championship last year, a week after finishing fourth in the Masters. In May, he won the Spanish Open at 50 years, 133 days to break his own record as the oldest European Tour champion.

Mediate won twice on the 50-and over tour in 2013.

“With this wind, you just have to pay attention and play the right shot,” Mediate said.

Olin Browne was third at 9 under after a 67. Fred Couples, Colin Montgomerie and Mark O’Meara were another stroke back. Couples shot 64, Montgomerie 66, and O’Meara 67.

Couples had an eagle and three birdies on the four par 5s.

“I putted really well,” Couples said. “I hit some really good putts early in the round and they didn’t go in, then I started making them and they all went in.”

Defending champion Bernhard Langer was 7 under after a 65. He had a 10 on the par-5 seventh hole in his opening 72.

The 40-player field features major champions from the last five years, other tournament winners in the last two seasons and sponsor invitees.

CALGARY — The Shaw Charity Classic has rewritten the history books for the second straight year with another record-setting charitable contribution for a Champions Tour event.

Tournament officials announced the 2014 event raised $2,406,610 for distribution amongst 21 youth-based charities in southern Alberta including: Calgary Police Foundation funded program YouthLink Calgary Police Interpretive Centre; Hull Services; Kids Cancer Care Foundation of Alberta; KidSport Calgary; Children’s Wish Foundation (Alberta and N.W.T.); Ronald McDonald House of Southern Alberta; United Way All-In for Youth; and Sheldon Kennedy Child Advocacy Centre. The contribution tops last year’s donation of $2,276,251, which was the single largest charitable donation in Champions Tour history at its time.

“The Shaw Charity Classic has always been focused on providing Calgarians with the opportunity to witness elite golf, but more importantly to raise significant money to support children’s charities in the province,” said Clay Riddell, tournament chairman, Shaw Charity Classic. “All of Calgary contributed to this incredible achievement – from the more than 1,400 volunteers, generous support from our corporate partners, unprecedented media coverage and the thousands of golf fans that lined the fairways to watch one of the best fields on Tour. Thank you to the entire community for helping us achieve our goals!”

In June, Shaw Communications Inc. reinforced the importance of children’s charities behind the award-winning tournament in the Stampede City by stepping up to commit $1.275 million to the Calgary Police Foundation funded program YouthLink Calgary Police Interpretive Centre and Hull Services – the title sponsor’s two official charitable partners for the second annual Champions Tour event in Calgary.

“On behalf of Shaw and our over 14,000 employees across Canada, we would like to thank everyone helped make this year’s tournament an outstanding event, and we can’t wait for next year,” said Brad Shaw, CEO, Shaw Communications Inc. “We are privileged to work alongside YouthLink Calgary Police Interpretive Centre, Hull Services and the other charities to improve the lives of children and families and give back to our community.”

New Date Set for 2015, Volunteer Registration Open for 2015 

Tournament officials are already focused on staging an even better event in its third year, thanks to a new date announced for the Calgary stop on the 2015 Champions Tour calendar. The legends of the game will return to Calgary earlier next summer to tee it up, August 5-9, 2015, at Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club.

“Holding the event earlier in the summer provides a greater chance for better weather, but more importantly even more opportunities to work with our corporate partners, and for attracting even more golf fans to the tournament,” said Sean Van Kesteren, tournament director, Shaw Charity Classic, who added volunteer registration for the 2015 event also opened on Friday. “We have already witnessed some of the largest crowds on the Champions Tour in our first two years, but Calgarians traditionally are enjoying the final long weekend of summer out of town, so we believe this schedule change by the Champions Tour will help us take the tournament to an even higher level.”

Tickets and corporate packages for the Shaw Charity Classic are available online at www.shawcharityclassic.com. Youth 17 and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult.