Sixteen holes later the Kurri trainee finished the opening day of the four-round event with a one-stroke lead and a score of three-under 69.

One shot back are Benjamin Gear (Terrey Hills) and Simon Vale (Pennants Hills), and Charlestown's defending champion Andrew McCormack is just behind the pack in eighth spot on par 72.

Jones's revival began immediately after the double bogey on the 11th hole when he birdied the par-four 12th and the par-five 13th.

The confidence of the 24-year-old continued to grow as his drives constantly found the fairways when he moved onto the front nine.

He carded birdies on the first, second and seventh and finished by nearly firing an eagle on the ninth in front of the clubhouse when his 91-metre approach shot hit and bounced off the pin.

Jones's only blemish was a three-shot bogey putt on the eighth.

"I started very poorly with a par and double but then knuckled down and hit some good shots on the way in," Jones said.

"From 50 to 100 metres my driving was really good, I just kept knocking the pins out."

The opening day was played in constant drizzle on the Myall Peninsula, keeping scores low on the soft greens.

It is Jones's third and last tilt at the state trainee title after finishing third in 2008.

In order to finally lift the trophy and earn a crack at the NSW PGA Championships and NSW Open in November, Jones undertook a weekly training schedule at Hawks Nest.

"I think it helped a lot, I just stuck to my game plan which is what I've been doing for months," he said.

"It felt really comfortable, which is big in an event like this."

Fine conditions are forecast today at Hawks Nest which is expected to improve scoring.

Jones tees off at 7.45am and said the early start will favour his game.

"Obviously the aim of the first round was to play solid and get yourself into a position. I'll come out early tomorrow morning to try and capitalise on it," he said last night.

"I heard there's bit of wind blowing tomorrow so it'll be nice to play early and get as many holes in before it gets up."

Pacific Dunes trainee Lee Barton is three-over 75 in 22nd place, and Josh De Groot (Merewether) and Brendan Smith (Belmont) carded 77s.