Marino seizes one-stroke lead at Congressional

By Steve Ginsburg

BETHESDA, Maryland (Reuters) - American Steve Marino shot a flawless five-under-par 65 to seize a one-shot lead after the first round of the AT&T National at Congressional Country Club Thursday.

The 28-year-old, playing his second full season on the PGA Tour, birdied three of the first four holes to set the tone for the day before signing off with his fifth birdie of the round at the par-four last.

"There was very little wind, the greens were perfect and soft, so you could really throw some iron shots in there," said Marino, who grew up in nearby Fairfax, Virginia.

One shot behind Marino are Americans Jeff Overton, Frank Lickliter II and Bob Estes, and Australian Rod Pampling.

The tournament is hosted by Tiger Woods but the world number one was forced to skip the event to recuperate from knee surgery following his triumph at last month's U.S. Open.

Woods's team mate at Stanford University, 35-year-old Notah Begay III, was among seven players tied for sixth at 67.

Marino, who has three Top 10 finishes this year and earned nearly $1.1 million in prize money, conceded "there's a long way to go" in his bid for a maiden PGA Tour title.

"The guy that's leading the first round I would say the majority of the time, they don't go on to win the tournament," he said.

"The tournament really doesn't begin pretty much until the back nine Sunday if you want to win."

Joining Begay two strokes off the pace were Germany's Alex Cejka, Americans Billy Mayfair, Tommy Armour III and Anthony Kim, Australian Stuart Appleby and Fredrik Jacobson of Sweden.

"I like the way I'm playing and I'm feeling comfortable out there," said Appleby. "I've got some good stuff going on. I like the course like this.

"It's in front of you and you don't need to play a hundred practice rounds to get the feel for it."

Begay is a four-time winner on the Tour but without a title since 2000.

"I could easily have shot five or six under today," he said. "I missed several putts inside six feet."

Holder K.J. Choi of South Korea carded a two-under 68 to lie three strokes off the pace, while American Rocco Mediate, the U.S. Open runner-up, finished at three over 73.