WASHINGTON: Ernie Els (pix) of South Africa drained a 50-foot eagle putt on the 18th hole Friday and sits in a three-way tie for first after the first round of the Champions Tour’s Boeing Classic in Snoqualmie, Wash.

Els, a two-time winner on the Champions Tour, finished the day with six birdies, including two to start his round, and had one bogey on the front nine and another on the back en route to his 6-under-par 66.