Major Winners Grand Slammed : Golf: Desert does its worst; wind and chill dampen efforts as Price holds a one-shot lead.

Nick Price, Fred Couples, Nick Faldo and Tom Kite were in a jovial mood at a Monday news conference preceding the PGA Grand Slam of Golf.

However, the winners of the four major tournaments this year--PGA Championship, Masters, British Open and U.S. Open--seemed more like grim survivors after Tuesday’s opening round of the $1-million, 36-hole tournament at the Jack Nicklaus Resort Course.

It was a 5-hour 25-minute round, with the wind kicking up considerably on the finishing holes and the temperature getting colder as the sun went down.

Price emerged, or survived, as the 18-hole leader by shooting a two-under-par 70.

Couples, who was the leader from the 13th through the 16th holes, finished bogey, double bogey and wound up with a 71, one shot behind Price.

Faldo left his putts short most of the day and had to settle for a 72.

Kite set the tone for his round when he three-putted the par-four first hole. He finished with a 75.

Price had never played the Nicklaus-designed course, but he was reading the greens with close to local knowledge during one stretch when he made five birdie putts from the seventh through the 12 holes. They ranged from 15 to 45 feet.

“I seemed to hole every putt I looked at,” said the South African-born Price. “That’s as well as I can putt. I didn’t hit the ball that well.”

As for the windy conditions, Price said: “It was hard work. There was so much sand and dust in your eyes.”

The severity of the course and playing as a foursome contributed to the length of the round, which ended close to sunset.

There were six lead changes, all involving Price and Couples.

Couples regained the lead on the par-four, 417-yard 13th hole with a 12-foot birdie putt. Price made bogey, barely missing his parputt.

Price took a share of the lead on the 210-yard 17th hole. He made par and Couples three-putted from about 65 feet for a bogey.

Then, on the demanding par-four, 458-yard finishing hole, Couples hooked his tee shot out of bounds.

“I was trying to hit a hard cut on 18 and I just pull-hooked it,” Couples said.

“To finish bogey, double, it’s not good, but I played well except for two shots all day.”

Couples doesn’t wear a golf glove, and he said his hands got raw on the last two holes as it became colder.

Kite said his play hadn’t been “sparkling” coming into the tournament--and he struggled Tuesday.

He is used to playing in windy conditions, having grown up in Texas.

“I need a windy day tomorrow, no question about it,” Kite said. “I put myself behind the eight ball as I did nothing (putting) on the greens.

“It’s (just) hard to shoot low scores on a Nicklaus golf course.”

He added that all of the players, except Price, had trouble judging the speed of the greens.

The winner gets $400,000, with $250,000, $200,000 and $150,000 awarded to the next threeplaces.

Not bad for two days of golf, wind and cold notwithstanding.

Tee time for today has been changed from 11 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.