RPTR BECAME CONFUSED ON WHICH APCH PROCS TO USE AND DSNDED TOO LOW ON THE LOC/DME APCH; SETTING OFF THE ATC LOW ALT ALERT. APCH CTLR INTERVENED AND ORDERED A PULL UP.

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I AIR FILED FOR THE LOC/DME APCH TO HAYWARD VIA THE SAN JOSE VOR AND RADAR VECTORS TO INTERCEPT. THE ALT WAS 4000 FT. I INTERCEPTED APCH COURSE AND CONTACTED TWR ACCORDING TO PROC. I WAS NOT AS FAMILIAR WITH THE VOR/DME PROC AS I THOUGHT HAVING FLOWN THE VOR A APCH MORE. I SUMMARILY THROUGH RECALL APPLIED VOR A DATA TO THE LOC/DME RATHER THAN ACCEPT THE LOC/DME INFO PER SE. BELIEVING I HAD NO ALT RESTR I RPTED ON THE LOC STARTING MY DSCNT AT THE 11- 9 DME INTERCEPT POINT WANTING TO SEE GND AND RWY AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE AND SET UP TO CIRCLE AND LAND. THE FIELD WAS AT MINIMUMS. NEEDLESS TO SAY I BROKE THE 2600 FT FAF ALT MINIMUMS; AND TRIPPING THE LOW ALT ALERT. UPON NOTIFICATION AND DIRECTIVE TO PULL UP I CONCURRED RETURNING TO 2600 FT IMMEDIATELY AND QUERYING THE TWR. I REALIZED MY ERROR; CONCURRED SUCH; DECLARED 'I CANNOT COMPLETE THE APCH AS PUBLISHED' AND DECLARED A MISSED APCH RADAR VECTORS BACK TO REINTERCEPT AND FLY THE APCH A SECOND TIME AGAIN ACCORDING TO ATC PROC. ON THE SECOND ATTEMPT I FLEW THE COURSE ACCURATELY AND CORRECTLY WITHOUT ANY TFC INCIDENT OR CONFLICTS TO A SAFE CONCLUSION; ALSO NO SYS SEQUENCING OR TFC DEVS OCCURRED. IN CONCLUSION I MISCONSTRUED THE INFO ON THE APCH PLATE; APPLIED TOO MUCH INFO AND ERRED. I ALSO DID NOT PAY ATTN TO THE APPLIED GRAPHIC CODE PERTINENT TO THE PARTICULAR APCH NOR DID I REALIZE ALT INFO AS DEPICTED BY THE COMBINED DATA OF ALTIMETER AND DME IN RELATION TO THE PROC. THE SECOND TIME UPON REVIEW OF THE DATA I DID AND WAS SUCCESSFUL IN COMPLETION.