Brown has played the game of golf for some time and made an amazing career from it, but recently he has been struggling to enjoy it, which was clearly a major goal this week.
"It's great to be playing the Jennian Homes Charles Tour again, I love these tournaments, but I'm just trying to enjoy my golf because it hasn't been happening recently. I want to take a positive attitude into this week and really decide whether I want to be here or not."
One man who does have a very positive attitude is the current New Zealand Open champion, Mike Hendry who finds himself at five-under par and in a tie for third place.
This is Hendry's first event since his superb victory in Queenstown where he broke the 14-year drought of Kiwi winners at the New Zealand Open.
A slightly rusty start did not affect him in the slightest and he's still very much in contention at this early stage of the tournament.
"It was a slow start and I had to grind out the first six, but I caught fire through the turn and finished with a birdie which was pleasing," said Hendry.
The Jennian Homes Charles Tour is providing a perfect launch pad for Hendry who has a busy schedule ahead on the Japan Tour.
"It's great to be here, I appreciate and enjoy playing these events. For me they are a great source of preparation before going overseas on tour and there are some very good players out there to test me."
In second place alone is Woonchul Na who carefully constructed an round of 64 to be just one back from Brown. After opening with a bogey, Na kicked into gear through the middle stages of the round with five birdies in six holes.
Na, whose best performance on the Jennian Homes Charles Tour was second place at the Taranaki Open in 2015, will no doubt be looking to go one better at the Akarana Open this week.
There were a few young guns who also put their hand up today with Canterbury's Matt Mclean and Howick's Jimmy Zheng sitting in third place alongside Hendry.
Other Western Bay professionals to score well include Jared Pender, Josh Geary and Kieran Muir on 67 and Hayden Beard on 68 with Tauranga amateur William Howard shooting a fine 67.
It is turning out to be a tight affair in the women's field with Subin Wui recording a solid round of two-under par to hold the outright lead.
The Pupuke amateur made four sublime birdies throughout the day but sadly let two shots slip to finish just one shot clear of the ever lurking Alanna Campbell from Omanu.
Campbell is no stranger to the top of a leaderboard on the national circuit and she may only have three chances left to earn another victory before she travels to America on a golfing scholarship.
Men's Scores after Round One
(Par 70)
63 Mark Brown (PGA New Zealand)
64 Woonchul Na (PGA New Zealand)
65 Jimmy Zheng (Howick), Michael Hendry (PGA New Zealand), Matthew McLean (Harewood)
66 Tae Koh (Windross Farm Golf Course), Joonsang Chung (PGA New Zealand), Ryan Chisnall (Greenacres), Gareth Paddison (PGA New Zealand), Ethan Jones (Manaia), Tom Parker (Christchurch)
67 Jared Pender (Te Puke), Kieran Muir (Omokoroa), Justin Morris (PGA New Zealand), Brett Allan (Hastings), Lachie McDonald (Marton), Mark Hutson (Muriwai), Josh Geary (PGA New Zealand), Wesley Jeon (Whitford Park)
68 Shaun Jones (PGA New Zealand), Douglas Holloway (PGA New Zealand), Taylor Gill (Bay of Islands Kerikeri Incorporated), Dongwoo Kang (PGA New Zealand), Henry Spring (Whakatane), Brad Shilton (PGA New Zealand), William Howard (Tauranga)
69 Minsoo Ko (PGA New Zealand), Sean Riordan (PGA New Zealand), Hayden Beard (Mt Maunganui), Kit Bittle (Wainui), Trevor Marshall (PGA New Zealand), Victor Janin (Rotorua), Chang Gi Lee (Pupuke), Tyler Wood (Ngahinepouri), Kevin Koong (Muriwai).
Women's Scores after Round One
(Par 70)
70 Subin Wui (Pupuke)
71 Alanna Campbell (Omanu)
73 Rose Zheng (Pakuranga), Vivian Lu (Royal Auckland), Carmen Lim (Windross Farm Golf Course), Siyi Keh (Pakuranga), Miree Jung (Titirangi)
74 Caryn Khoo (Pakuranga), Hanee Song (P), Fiona Xu (Pakuranga), Jenna Hunter (P), Chantelle Cassidy (Riverside)
75 Brittney Dryland (Titirangi)
76 Jodae Ngaheu (Tauranga)
77 Caitlin Maurice (Omokoroa), Jessica Huang (Pakuranga)
