Kate Golden leads by one shot after a first round of 63 at the Shoprite LPGA Classic in Atlantic City.

Golden, a 34-year-old Texan whose only win on Tour was in last year's State Farm Classic, had eight birdies to open a one-shot lead over fellow American Juli Inkster and Canada's Lorie Kane.

Britain's Johanna Head is a shot further adrift after shooting a 67.

Head finished second in the Tenerife Open on the Evian European Tour in May, but has struggled all season in the US with only one top 50 finish from five starts.

"I haven't played well at all since coming over here," she admitted.

"But I kept grinding away and this was the reward. It has been frustrating because my form in Europe was so encouraging.

"But, hopefully, this will be a turning point and I can keep it up for the final two rounds."

Head had four birdies in a flawless opening 15 holes before making her only bogey when she hit into deep rough and had to take a penalty drop at the long 16th.

Dropped shots

But she picked up another birdie at the long 18th where her eagle chip settled on the lip of the hole.

Alison Nicholas, the 1997 US Open champion, looked set to join Head in a tie for fifth.

But she dropped shots at the last two holes for a 69 with fellow Briton Laura Davies one shot behind.

Leading first round scores in the ShopRite LPGA Classic in Atlantic City(US unless stated, par 71)

64 Kate Golden
65 Juli Inkster, Lorie Kane (Can)
66 Tracy Hanson
67 Jenny Lidback (Per), Stephanie Keever, Michele Redman, Johanna Head (Gbr), Julie Piers
68 Natalie Gulbis, Betsy King, Annika Sorenstam (Swe), Nanci Bowen, Jean Bartholomew
69 Mitzi Edge, Carri Wood, Rosie Jones, Candie Kung, Pat Hurst, Leslie Spalding, Jung Yeon Lee (Kor), Shiho Katano (Jap), Alison Nicholas (Gbr)
70 Sally Dee, Anna Acker-Macoska, Kim Williams, Kirsti Albers, Marianne Morris, Laurie Rinker-Graham, Helen Alfredsson (Swe), Deb Richard, Liselotte Neumann (Swe), Jill McGill, Laura Davies (Gbr), Joanne Carner, Michelle McGann, Heather Bowie, Yu Ping Lin (Tai), Annette DeLuca
71 Joanne Morley (Gbr), Tina Fischer (Ger), Tina Tombs, Barb Mucha, Hiromi Kobayashi (Jap), Vicki Goetze-Ackerman, Shani Waugh (Aus), Denise Killeen, Catriona Matthew (Gbr), Kris Tschetter, Carin Koch (Swe), Laurel Kean, Dawn Coe-Jones (Can), Jennifer Hubbard, Tonya Gill, Dodie Mazzuca, Becky Morgan (Gbr)

Selected others:

72 Karen Stupples (Gbr), Kathryn Marshall, Suzanne Strudwick (Gbr, Catrin Nilsmark (Swe) 73 Patricia Meunier-Lebouc (Fra, Natascha Fink (Aut)
74 Janice Moodie (Gbr), Charlotta Sorenstam (Swe, Suzann Pettersen (Nor)
75 Eva Dahloff (Swe)