ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Mark Bronson is the early leader in the clubhouse after completion of local qualifiers in the 2010 Military Long Drive Championship.

Bronson’s drive of 389 yards at Cheyenne Shadows Golf Course at Fort Carson, Colo., was the longest tape-measure shot among 20 installations that played host to first-round events.

At Fort Belvoir, Va., John Merritt launched the second-longest drive of the first round of qualifiers at 386 yards. A group of four golfers were five yards behind Bronson’s blast with drives of 384 yards: Kyle McWilliams at Fort Bliss, Texas; Mikael Dubois at Fort Hood, Texas; Brian Webb at Fort Jackson, S.C.; and. Kelsey Steiner at Yongsan, Korea.

The Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation-backed competition presented by 7UP is open to active-duty U.S. military and family members 18 and older, including National Guard, Reserve and retirees from all services.

Seventeen qualifiers from the continental United States competed in regional competition at City Pointe Driving Range in Dallas.

They will vie for six spots in the 2010 Military Long Drive Championship finals, scheduled for Nov. 3 in Mesquite, Nev.

Steiner, Bryan King (380 yards) of Wiesbaden, Germany, and Army family member Brandon Boehmer (328 yards) of Camp Zama, Japan, will advance directly to Mesquite as installation winners from outside North America.

Three-time Military Long Drive champion Ryan Hixson of the U.S. Coast Guard earned an exemption to complete the 10-man field in Mesquite, where the grand champion will win $10,000 and an exemption into the 2011 Military and RE/MAX World Long Drive Championships.

Editor’s note: At press time, the results from the Sept. 11 competition in Dallas weren’t released.