RENO, Nev. - Prior to this weekend, Richard McGill of Chicago had only seen the National Bowling Stadium on a movie screen, but that couldn't prepare him for his first trip to the USBC Open Championships.

He needed some time to take in the grandeur of the one-of-a-kind Stadium in person, but it didn't take him any time at all to get comfortable on the lanes and close out his tournament debut with a visit to the top of the leaderboard.

The 27-year-old right-hander finished his trip with games of 214, 219 and 210 and claimed the Classified Singles lead with a 643 series Monday. Nathan Rath of Buffalo Lake, Minn., previously held the lead with 610.

"I'd heard about this tournament, and I actually thought I would have trouble shooting over 150 or 160, since it's so much different than a house shot," McGill said. "Luckily, I was able to minimize open frames and strike a lot."

McGill did his homework before making the trip to Reno and drilled a new bowling ball just for the Open Championships. He knew he was going to encounter a longer and heavier oil pattern than he was used to, so he drilled a more aggressive ball that would hook earlier. After a few minor adjustments, the pins started to fall.

"When doubles started, I was throwing the ball too slow, and it was going through the nose," McGill. "I increased the speed at the end of doubles and started hitting the pocket. When I saw the ball reacting perfectly, I knew that if I could keep the speed up, I had a good chance."

Being surrounded by friends and fellow league bowlers from Irving Park Lanes helped McGill stay calm and focused from the start.

"From the first game they were supportive and told me to keep it up," McGill said. "I'm amazed that I could ever be on top like this, especially at a tournament this large. It's wonderful, and I can go home happy."

McGill added 555 in team and 491 in doubles for a 1,689 all-events total, which is third in Classified All-Events. Sheldon Goldberg of Hollywood, Fla., leads with 1,721.

Presenting sponsors for the 2011 USBC Open Championships are Circus Circus, Eldorado Hotel Casino and Silver Legacy Resort Casino in Reno, Nev. Other sponsors include Sands Regency Casino Hotel, official brackets sponsor, Kegel, official lane maintenance provider, Humana, official registration sponsor, US Steltronic, official scoring system, and supporting sponsors Storm Bowling Products, UPS, Nationwide Insurance, Atlantis Casino Resort and Spa, Harrah's Reno Casino and Hotel and Peppermill Hotel Casino.