NEWRY —  Seth Sweet has won enough at the high school and junior golf level to fill even some of the grandest of trophy cases.

Now the Madison High School graduate and freshman-to-be at Old Dominion University is taking aim at Maine’s biggest golf prize.

Sweet fired a 2-under-par 70 in the midday sun at Sunday River Golf Club on Tuesday to take the lead after the first day of the 93rd Maine Amateur Golf Championship.

“I’m feeling great, I missed maybe three shots out there,” Sweet said. “Every other shot, I either missed where I wanted to, or hit it perfect.”

Sweet had an up-and-down front nine, turning at 1-over 37. He took a peek at the leaderboard on his way by the clubhouse.

“I made the turn at 37, saw the leader was at 72 and I wanted to at least come in at 71.”

He did himself one better.

On the back, he stepped it up with birdies at 10, 13, 15 and 16 to counter a bogey at 14.

“Bogeys are going to happen on this course,” said Sweet, who hadn’t seen Sunday River much prior to the tournament.

“I’d seen this course two other times, (Monday) and last Thursday,” he said. “I know people were building it up to be really, really hard, but it’s just another golf course.”

Sweet’s 70 was two better Tuesday than Mike Doran, who knows a thing or two about grabbing an early lead at the Maine Amateur.

A year ago, he led the tourney after the first day, only to struggle in the second and third rounds on his way to a seventh-place finish.

“It is a 54-hole tournament,” Doran said. “It’s not just one good round on the first day. The first tee shot counts as much as the last putt.”

He’ll have a chance this week to prove he’s learned his lesson. Doran made three birdies to offset three bogeys.

“I was never more than one over, and never better than one under,” Doran said. “I had three birdies, three bogeys, I was pretty steady.”

Doran, who works for the Maine State Golf Association running the junior and senior programs, is one better than a pair of players, including Mike O’Brien of Sable Oakes in South Portland, who said he surprised himself with his 73 on Tuesday.

“I got off to a good start,” O’Brien said. “Birdies on one, two and four helped. I bogeyed five and then made a couple good putts to save par.”

Another putt on the par-3 16th was perhaps O’Brien’s most critical of the round.

“I plugged into the bunker and chucked it over,” O’Brien said. “I hit a bad chip and had 20 feet for bogey and made it. That kept the momentum going, even though it was a bogey. That could have gotten away.”

Len Cole also fired a 73 playing mostly in the afternoon.

Five other golfers — two-time defending champion Ryan Gay, perennial contenders Jason Gall and Johnny Hayes IV, Curt Jordan and Matthew Loubier — are four back after shooting 74.

“I really struggled all day,” Gay said. “Coming from Augusta’s greens, they’re super fast and smooth, and these here are slower. I could not get a putt to the hole all day long. You really have to read the grain out here, it’s really tough.”

Gay looked like he was going to make a charge on the back nine.

“I fought it all day, then I made two birdies in a row (on 13 and 14),” Gay said. “Then I got to the par 5, I had 225 in and instead of hitting a nice 3-iron in, I tried to over-hook a 4-iron, get a little extra out of it and run it up there. I started it too far right, went in the woods and made a bogey. That was really a two-shot swing right there.”

Jordan, originally of Minot, was 4-over through 15 holes, but drained birdies at 16 and 18 to finish with his 74. Hayes’ round included three birdies and five bogeys, including three of the final four holes Tuesday, while Gall balanced four birdies and six bogeys. Loubier made three bogeys and a double to offset three birdies.

Perennial contender and reigning Maine Mid-Amateur champion Joe Alvarez carded a 75 to remain in contention. Joe Baker and JJ Harris joined two-time champion Ricky Jones with 76s.

Golfers agreed after Tuesday’s round that caution was the best way to approach Sunday River, which played longer than 7,000 yards for the first round.

“One swing in the woods, you’re going to make a big number,” Doran said. “It’s important to hit fairways out there, par’s a good score.”

It’s likely to remain a good score all week long.

Wednesday’s second round begins at 7 a.m. with golfers going off in reverse order by wave. Officials will cut the field to the low 40 and ties for Thursday’s third and final round.