His birdie at the 18th hole put him at plus-22, one point better than Larry Nelson , the reigning Player of the Year, and Tom Kite . I have a lot of confidence in my game now. Kite finished five birdies on the back nine after a bogey at the first hole. Jim Thorpe , Isao Aoki of Japan and Walter Hall are at plus-17. First-round leader Bob Eastwood had no points Saturday.
Players receive eight points for a double eagle, five for an eagle and two for a birdie.
They get no points for a par, lose one for a bogey and drop three for a double bogey or worse. Defending champion Bruce Fleisher had 10 points Saturday and is tied for 12th at plus-14. He had six birdies and five bogeys during a colorful first round Friday but was just two bad putts from a flawless scorecard Saturday. Gilder earned just one point over the first eight holes but began a string of three consecutive birdies with a 12-foot putt at the ninth. I was minus-2 there yesterday and it got me started.