CHARLOTTE — When it comes to putting, Robert Streb finds himself in the middle of the pack. He ranks 79th out of more than 200 golfers on the pro tour in total putting. He got a few to drop on his way to a 7-under 65 to grab the top spot on the leaderboard after the first day of the Wells Fargo Championship.

He knocked in a 35-footer for birdie on the tough par-three 17th. There was also a 7-foot par save on the par-four fourth and a 9-foot putt for par on the 12th.

“I finally made some putts over five, six feet,” he said. “I just putted solid, and sometimes a few go in, and it changes.”

The 26 putts he needed Thursday to get in the lead were more than two putts lower than his season average of 29.24.

While the number of putts was impressive in itself, an ability to get the ball from long range in to a makable range bailed him out a couple of times during the round.

It started on the 10th hole, his first hole of the day. Streb was 73 feet from the cup, and his first effort left him with just 13 inches for par. He pulled off a similar feat on the up-and-down, par-five 15th. Streb’s 66-foot try for eagle missed, but he gave himself a chance at birdie from five feet. That putt dropped.

On the par-four ninth, Streb faced a 45-footer for birdie. He cozied the ball to the cup and left himself just a two-foot putt for par on his last hole of the day.

The success on the greens Thursday is a byproduct of a slight adjustment.

“I kind of got my hands pushed forward a little bit,” Streb said. “They were sinking back.”

He’s also coming off a solid week of play at last week’s Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass. Streb finished tied for 30th in a tournament that has one of the strongest and deepest fields for a PGA Tour event. He credited the putter for that.

“Last week was the first time in a while I felt like I had putted pretty solid for the most part,” he said. “So [Streb will] try to keep it going the right way and see if a few go in. Sometimes you get rolling.”