The American fired up late to finish in style and sit at seven under alongside compatriot Matt Gogel after the opening round of the Champions Tour event on Friday (local time).Â
Kelly's seven-under-par 65 saw him roll in birdies at Nos.12-17, including par-3s at Nos.13 and 17 at The Club at Snoqualmie Ridge.
That run actually boosted him to eight under, but he finished on a sour note at the par-5 18th when he went from bunker to bunker, reached the green in four and two-putted for his only bogey of the day.
Steve Allen was the leading Australian after opening with a four-under 68 to be three shots off the lead.
A shot further back are fellow Aussies Stuart Appleby, Greg Chalmers and Brad Jones.
Rod Pampling is at two under, with left-hander Richard Green at one under.
Kelly said he was surprised by his red-hot late run.
"I didn't even realise I was on a pretty good birdie streak until I saw it on 17, that was fun," Kelly said. "I knew I was eight under but didn't know I just made six in a row."
Kelly, 58, will try to win the Boeing Classic for the second time. It was the site of his first PGA Tour Champions victory in 2017, and now he is searching for his 14th title overall.
He and Gogel take a one-stroke lead over Paul Goydos into the weekend.
Gogel was one of the last players to finish and capped off a busy day with birdies at Nos.8-9 to tie Kelly for the lead. His round featured nine birdies and two bogeys.
Goydos turned in a bogey-free card, with five of his six birdies coming on the front nine.
Two-time defending champion Stephen Ames of Canada opened with a two-under 70.
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