Port Kembla's Chris Campbell has a two-shot lead after the first round of the NSW Mid Amateur Championship at Shoalhaven Heads.
The former Japanese Tour player carded a solid opening three-under-par 68 to lead by two shots from the Links Shell Cove's Colin Mitchell, who was the only other player to finish in red numbers on a day perfect for scoring.
Campbell started his day with back to back birdies on the 17th and 18th to set the tone for his round.
He added three more alongside two bogeys on his front nine to ensure his name was at the top of the leaderboard.
"I got off to a good start. I didn't hit too many good shots, and I managed to stay out of trouble mainly," Campbell said post round.
It is the first tournament back in the amateur ranks for Campbell, whose professional career saw him play his trade on the Australasian, Japanese and China Golf Tours.
"2011 was my last event in China, but I played around Australian until about 2015."
The decision to return to the amateur ranks was a relatively easy one for the 43-year-old. The caveat, however, was all about enjoying his time on the golf course without heaping too many expectations on his performances.
"I'm not practising, and you can't compete against the top pros if you're not, and you can't make money.
"The options for me were playing amateur golf against scratch golfers, or the odd pro-am and on courses that aren't in nearly as good a condition like this. It was a pretty easy decision," he explained.
Asked about his thoughts on how he will go over the remaining two rounds, the Campbell was quite reserved.
"I haven't played three rounds in a row for a long time, so my goal was to come away from the week saying I enjoyed the experience. I don't care if I come 10th or whatever.
"It's to have a good frame of mind, have the right attitude and enjoy it. I don't really care what happens," he smiled.
Quilliam leads Women's Divison by two.
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Moore Park's Lucie Quilliam has a two-shot lead after the opening round of the Women's section of the NSW Mid-Amateur Championship at Shoalhaven Heads Golf Club.
Quilliam carded a six over par 78 to lead from a group of five golfers including former champions Sharon Thompson, Gemma Dooley, and Jan Chrichton, alongside Alison Gatland and Adele Douglas.
Defending champion Colette Blacklock is in a tie for 10th place after an opening round of 86.