D8 PGACHAMPIONSHIPFIRSTROUND
EZ SU
KLMNO GOLF
FRIDAY, AUGUST 13, 2010
PGACHAMPIONSHIP
AT WHISTLING STRAITS, STRAITS COURSE IN SHEBOYGAN, WIS. PURSE: $7.5 MILLION; YARDAGE: 7,514; PAR: 72 (36-36)
Partial First Round CHRIS GRAYTHEN/GETTY IMAGES TigerWoods’s tee shot on the fifth hole is not quite to his liking, but the worldNo. 1 got off to a promising start with birdies on three of his first four holes. Woods finds his way under par
Five players stand at 4 under as fog interrupts first round
BY DOUG FERGUSON
sheboygan, wis. — The fog finally lifted over Whistling Straits and re- vealed a stunning vista. Tiger Woods’s name was atop the
leader board. Just not for long. At the end of opening day in the PGA
Championship, he wasn’t near the names of Bubba Watson and Francesco Molinari, who each opened with a 4-un- der-par 68; or Ernie Els, Matt Kuchar and Nick Watney, who also were at 4 under when it became too dark for them to finish the first round. Woods, who made three birdies in-
side 12 feet on the opening four holes, had to birdie his final hole just to break par, a 1-under 71. That used to be considered an ordinary start in a major. Considering his recent woes, this was nearly cause for celebration. “To shoot something under par, that
was the goal today,”Woods said. He joined 21 others among the 78
early starters who completed the first round, which was delayed by more than three hours because of fog. Still to be determined is whether he can back that up. It was the first time in eight rounds thatWoods had broken par. And there were enough errant shots,
including one that went so far left it found amarshhe didn’tknowwasthere, that Woods had to make an eight-foot birdie on the final hole to avoid wasting a day in which he appeared to make progress. “I’ve played too good not to shoot
under par,” Woods said. “It would’ve been very disappointing and frustrating to end up at even par as well as I played today. To make that putt — to shoot under par — just feels like that’s what I should have shot the way I played today. And that’s a good feeling.”
ANDREW REDINGTON/GETTY IMAGES
CharlesHowell III enjoys a steady opening round at Whistling Straits, firing a 69 that included four consecutive birdies with a favorable breeze on the back nine.
Since when is shooting 71 a good
feeling for a guy with 14 majors? When he’s coming off the worst tour-
nament of his career, an 18-over 298 at Firestone to beat only one player in the field, raising questions that ranged from whether this would be his last PGA Tour event of the year in America to whether he belonged in the Ryder Cup. “Wel- come to golf, you know?”Woods said. The fog delay meant none of the late
starters could finish the opening round. Els, desperate to make sure another year doesn’t end without a major, played
bogey-free through 14 holes and was at 4 under, making a seven-foot par save on the 14th shortly before the horn sound- ed. Also at 4 under were Matt Kuchar and Nick Watney, courtesy of eagles — Kuchar on the 13th early in his round by holing from the fairway,Watney on the par-5 11th, his last hole of the day. Phil Mickelson, closer than ever to
going toNo. 1 in the world, ended a wild day at 1 under.He knocked it close for a couple of birdies, and spent the rest of the time in the bunkers and rough as he scrambled to save par. He finished on a
SALLY JENKINS Up-and-down play has Tiger’s Ryder Cup invitation in jeopardy jenkins from D1
Ashe finishedhisupswing,he let go of the club altogether. It sailedinto the sky andspunlike adrummajorette’s baton. His ballwoundupina bog.Woods stared into thehazardsavagely. “You[bleeping] idiot,”he beratedhimself.He bent over into a towel andissueda lowguttural cry into it. Itmusthavehelped, because Woodsmanagedto saveparwitha terrificwedge to six feet. Thependulumswings continuedto
the endof the round.He bogeyedthe par-3 seventhwithadifficult chipfrom the greenside rough, but thenmade birdie onhis finalhole,withanapproach to eight feet. Itputhimunderpar for the first time inhis last eight rounds onthe PGATour. It’shardto knowwhat tomake of such
ups anddowns fromevent to event, and hole tohole.Obviously,Woods’smental toughness is still one of themost formidable assets inthe golfingworld—
onlyhe couldplay so badly oneweek and thenfindaway to reengage, andcontend for amajor championshipthenextweek. Butwhatdoes thatmeanforPavin
andtheRyderCupteam?Woods is currently 10thintheRyderCup standings, andonly the topeightmen will automatically qualify.Woods just might be able todeliver a strong enough performance.But ifnot,Pavin,whowill complete the 12-manrosterwithfour choices ofhis ownnextmonth,will be squarely onthe spot. JimGray of theGolf Channelhas reportedthatPavinhas reserveda captain’spick forWoods, but inwhatmay be a signofhis own confusion,Pavinvehementlydenies it, andsayshe is still considering several otherplayers. Rightly so.The lack of clarity in
Woods’s game is ominous.Who knows whatmakesWoods sounpredictable thesedays?Lack ofpractice?Distractions inhis scandal-riddenprivate life, and personalunease? Some subtlewrinkle in
his swing ormechanical glitchinhis putting stroke? ShouldPavinchoose aplayerwho is
clearly struggling, andwhose recordin theRyderCupis less thanspectacular to beginwith?Woods’s recordinfive appearances is anunremarkable 10-13-2 andtheUnitedStateshas gone 1-4,which hardly suggestshe is the competitive backbone of the team.We sawlastweek what canhappenwhenWoods is apathetic or ambivalent orunfocusedin anevent,whenhe lackshunger.Yet if PavinleavesWoods off the teamandthe UnitedStates loses,hewill be criticized for omittinghim. ButPavinshouldsteelhimself todo
just that, ifWoods can’tput together four rounds goodenoughto qualify.Here’s why.DespiteWoods’smental fortitude, some statistics suggesthe isnot just fighting the odderratic swing, but some subtler andmore chronic inconsistencies inhis game, forwhichthere isno quick fix, andwhichmakeshiman
unpromising captain’spick. In2008, the last yearhewonamajor,Woodswas the most accurateplayer intheworldfrom 100-125 yards away.Hehit 89percent of the greenshe aimedat, ranking first on thePGATour, andhe ledthe tour in proximity to thepin, too, averaging about 12 feet. Inotherwords,hehitmore greens, andwas closer to the flag than anyone.Now,he ishitting just 60.98 percent ofhis greens fromthatdistance, 195thintheworld, andhehas fallento 30thinproximity, averaging 18 feet from the flagstick. It’s aprecipitousdrop. Perhapsmore important,Woods isno longer a rock-solidputter, either. In2009 he rankedtiedfor 20thonthePGATour inputtsper round,nowhe is 129th. Captain’spicksput the captainonthe
spot.They canmake the captainlook very smart, or verydumb. In1993Lanny Wadkinsmade the slumpingCurtis Strange a controversial captain’spick. Strangewent adisastrous 0-3. In2008 EuropeanCaptainNickFaldowas
excoriatedbymembers of the overseas press for choosing IanPoulter, but Poulter turnedout to be a smart selection, going 4-1. Historically, the best captain’spicks
tendto bring something extra to the party interms of experience, or team cohesionandmorale, or competitive fire. Sometimes they are gambles,hot birdie- makers, or sentimental choices.Pavin coulddoworse, for instance, thanto selectTomWatsonforhis leadershipand his experience inplaying overseas.Or the brilliant young rookieRickieFowler, whose recordinWalkerCupplaywas 7-0. OrBubbaWatson,whose 68 tiedhimfor thePGAleadbefore first roundplaywas calledbydarkness, andwho is the leadingpar breaker onthePGATour this year. IfPavinreserves a captain’spick for Woods, itmeans someone like that gets left off the roster. Someonewho just might be amore reliable teamplayer at themoment.
jenkinss@washpost.com
strong note with back-to-back birdies, the last one a wedge that stopped two feet away on the 11th. In a summer of majors at Pebble
Beach and St. Andrews, it only figures that a fog delay of just over three hours would be in Wisconsin. “I had never gottenupat 5:30 for a 12
o’clock tee time,” said Charles Howell III, who shot a 69. The group at 69 also included Ryan
Moore, the only player among the early starters to reach 5 under until dropping two shots over his last three holes into the wind. Jason Day of Australia bo- geyed his last hole for a 69. With so much rain on Wednesday
and in the week before the PGA, the course that looks like a links played more like a PGA Tour course with soft conditions. It was suited perfectly for Watson, one of the biggest hitters in golf. Of all his birdies, none showed off his
power quite like 587-yard fifth hole, the first one on the back nine with the wind at this back. Ignoring the bunkers and water to the right, Watson hammered his drive so far — 445 yards by his calculations — that he had only a lob wedge for his second shot and an easy two-putt birdie. Everything feels easier these days for
Watson, the southpaw from the Florida Panhandle who has been through some tough times at home. His father is battling cancer, and he had a major scare over the Christmas holidays when told that his wife — who once played professional basketball — had a tumor. It turned out to be an enlarged pituitary gland, but Watson still broke down talking about it. His goalnowis to enjoy himself, from
the video games at night to the golf he plays during the day, and it led to his firstPGATour victory twomonthsagoat the Travelers Championship. Is a major too far behind? Watson
didn’t sound like the pressure would ever get to him. “Any golf tournament I have a chance to win, that’s a major,” he said. “I don’t change the way I do anything.”
—Associated Press
TheFirstRoundWasSuspendedDueToDarknessWith75Players StillOnTheCourse. Bubba Watson ........................................... 35 33 — 68 Francesco Molinari .................................... 34 34 — 68 Jason Day .................................................. 35 34 — 69 Ryan Moore ............................................... 35 34 — 69 Charles Howell III ...................................... 37 32 — 69 John Merrick .............................................. 35 35 — 70 Kyung-tae Kim .......................................... 35 35 — 70 Martin Laird .............................................. 35 35 — 70 Jim Furyk ................................................... 35 35 — 70 Michael Sim ............................................... 34 36 — 70 Thongchai Jaidee ....................................... 35 35 — 70 Gregory Bourdy ......................................... 37 33 — 70 Stephen Gallacher ..................................... 37 34 — 71 Steve Elkington ......................................... 36 35 — 71 Ryan Palmer .............................................. 36 35 — 71 Brian Davis ................................................ 36 35 — 71 Edoardo Molinari ....................................... 34 37 — 71 Tiger Woods .............................................. 37 34 — 71 Marc Leishman .......................................... 33 38 — 71 Rhys Davies ............................................... 35 36 — 71 Camilo Villegas ......................................... 36 35 — 71 Stuart Appleby .......................................... 39 33 — 72 Luke Donald ............................................... 37 35 — 72 J.B. Holmes ............................................... 36 36 — 72 Paul Casey ................................................. 37 35 — 72 Matt Bettencourt ...................................... 36 36 — 72 Martin Kaymer .......................................... 37 35 — 72 D.J. Trahan ................................................ 37 35 — 72 Y.E. Yang ................................................... 35 37 — 72 Brian Gay ................................................... 36 36 — 72 Ian Poulter ................................................. 35 37 — 72 David Horsey ............................................. 34 38 — 72 Troy Matteson ........................................... 37 35 — 72 Bo Van Pelt ................................................ 35 38 — 73 Vaughn Taylor ........................................... 38 35 — 73 Rickie Fowler ............................................. 36 37 — 73 Justin Leonard .......................................... 36 37 — 73 Rob Labritz ................................................ 35 38 — 73 Soren Kjeldsen .......................................... 37 36 — 73 Charl Schwartzel ....................................... 36 37 — 73 Davis Love III ............................................. 36 37 — 73 Vijay Singh ................................................ 35 38 — 73 Ben Crane .................................................. 36 37 — 73 Sonny Skinner ........................................... 38 35 — 73 Steve Marino ............................................. 37 37 — 74 K.J. Choi ..................................................... 35 39 — 74 Geoff Ogilvy .............................................. 38 36 — 74 Hiroyuki Fujita .......................................... 36 38 — 74 Alvaro Quiros ............................................ 36 38 — 74 Tetsuji Hiratsuka ...................................... 38 36 — 74 David Toms ................................................ 39 35 — 74 Anthony Kim ............................................. 38 36 — 74 Matt Jones ................................................ 36 38 — 74 Brendon de Jonge ...................................... 39 35 — 74 Danny Willett ............................................ 39 35 — 74 Scott Hebert .............................................. 38 37 — 75 Tim Petrovic .............................................. 37 38 — 75 Rich Steinmetz .......................................... 40 35 — 75 Jerry Kelly ................................................. 36 39 — 75 Padraig Harrington ................................... 36 39 — 75 Ricky Barnes .............................................. 37 38 — 75 George McNeill .......................................... 38 37 — 75 Keith Ohr ................................................... 40 38 — 78 Sergio Garcia ............................................. 40 38 — 78 Raphael Jacquelin ..................................... 37 41 — 78 Rob Moss ................................................... 38 40 — 78 Ryo Ishikawa ............................................. 35 41 — 76 Kyle Flinton ............................................... 39 37 — 76 John Daly ................................................... 37 39 — 76 Fredrik Jacobson ....................................... 38 38 — 76 Retief Goosen ............................................ 35 41 — 76 Derek Lamely ............................................ 39 38 — 77 Stewart Cink ............................................. 38 39 — 77 Corey Pavin ................................................ 39 40 — 79 Ryan Benzel ............................................... 40 39 — 79 Mark Brooks .............................................. 39 41 — 80 Mark Sheftic .............................................. 43 39 — 82 Jason Schmuhl .......................................... 43 39 — 82
DID NOT FINISH
Matt Kuchar, Ernie Els, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, Darren Clarke, Simon Khan, Tim Thelen, Shaun Micheel, Peter Hanson, Nick Wat- ney, Shane Lowry, Angel Cabrera, Carl Pettersson, Chad Campbell, Dustin Johnson, Seung Yul Noh, Kenny Perry, Steve Stricker, Rory McIlroy, Zach Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Tim Clark, Kevin Na, Robert Karlsson, Kris Blanks, Jimmy Walker, Jason Dufner, Troy Pare, Bryce Molder, Mike Weir, Kevin Sutherland, D.A. Points, Miguel An- gel Jimenez, Wenchong Liang, Adam Scott, Lucas Glover, Yuta Ike- da, Ben Curtis, Louis Oosthuizen, Stephen Ames, Bill Haas, Justin Rose, Kevin Stadler, Charlie Wi, Simon Dyson, Trevor Immelman, Hunter Mahan, Danny Balin, Ross McGowan, Mitch Lowe, Bill Lunde, Stu Ingraham, Robert McClellan, Fredrik Andersson, Hed Brandt Snedeker, Heath Slocum, Jeff Overton, Jason Bohn, Tom Le- hman, Mike Small, Graeme McDowell, Scott Verplank, Sean O'Hair, David Hutsell, John Senden, Anders Hansen, Koumei Oda, Oliver Wilson, Rory Sabbatini, Chris Wood, Bruce Smith, Paul Goydos, Co- lin Montgomerie, Ross Fisher, Cameron Beckman, Boo Weekley, So- ren Hansen, Henrik Stenson, Chip Sullivan
TEETIMES
PlayersthatdidnotfinishthefirstroundonThursdaystartwhere
theyleftoffat8a.m.today. FRIDAY’S SECOND ROUND HOLE 1
9:30 a.m.: Fredrik Andersson Hed, David Hutsell, John Senden 9:40 a.m.: Bryce Molder, Chip Sullivan, Carl Pettersson 9:50 a.m.: Koumei Oda, Colin Montgomerie, Matt Kuchar 10 a.m.: Heath Slocum, Soren Hansen, Cameron Beckman 10:10 a.m.: Boo Weekley, D.A. Points, Seung-Yul Noh 10:20 a.m.: Jason Bohn, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Wen-chong Liang 10:30 a.m.: Tom Lehman, Shaun Micheel, Mike Small 10:40 a.m.: Peter Hanson, Yuta Ikeda, Ben Curtis 10:50 a.m.: Stephen Ames, Oliver Wilson, Bill Haas 11 a.m.: Kevin Na, Shane Lowry, Scott Verplank 11:10 a.m.: Sean O’Hair, Danny Balin, Robert Karlsson 11:20 a.m.: Kevin Stadler, Stun Ingraham, Charlie Wi 11:30 a.m.: Robert McClellan, Jimmy Walker, Simon Khan 2:45 p.m.: Tim Petrovic, Rich Steinmetz, Jason Day 2:55 p.m.: Rickie Fowler, Justin Leonard, Ryo Ishikawa 3:05 p.m.: Stuart Appleby, Kyle Flinton, Soren Kjeldsen 3:15 p.m.: Jim Furyk, Geoff Ogilvy, Charl Schwartzel 3:25 p.m.: Luke Donald, Tetsuji Hiratsuka, J.B. Holmes 3:35 p.m.: Jerry Kelly, Paul Casey, Anthony Kim 3:45 p.m.: Padraig Harrington, Davis Love III, John Daly 3:55 p.m.: Sergio Garcia, Stewart Cink, Martin Kaymer 4:05 p.m.: Y.E. Yang, Vijay Singh, Tiger Woods 4:15 p.m.: Retief Goosen, Ryan Moore, Francesco Molinari 4:25 p.m.: Corey Pavin, Ian Poulter, Camilo Villegas 4:35 p.m.: Rob Moss, Charles Howell III, Gregory Bourdy 4:45 p.m.: Jason Schmuhl, Troy Matteson, Danny Willett
HOLE 10
9:30 a.m.: Paul Goydos, Tim Thelen, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano 9:40 a.m.: Jason Dufner, Troy Pare, Anders Hansen 9:50 a.m.: Rory Sabbatini, Chris Wood, Brandt Snedeker 10 a.m.: Ross Fisher, Mike Weir, Chad Campbell 10:10 a.m.: Kevin Sutherland, Ernie Els, Dustin Johnson 10:20 a.m.: Jeff Overton, Darren Clarke, Kenny Perry 10:30 a.m.: Steve Stricker, Rory McIlroy, Adam Scott 10:40 a.m.: Henrik Stenson, Zach Johnson, Lucas Glover 10:50 a.m.: Phil Mickelson, Graeme McDowell, Louis Oosthuizen 11 a.m.: Justin Rose, Tim Clark, Nick Watney 11:10 a.m.: Trevor Immelman, Angel Cabrera, Hunter Mahan 11:20 a.m.: Ross McGowan, Mitch Lowe, Bill Lunde 11:30 a.m.: Simon Dyson, Bruce Smith, Kris Blanks 2:45 p.m.: Bo Van Pelt, Scott Hebert, Vaughn Taylor 2:55 p.m.: Stephen Gallacher, Keith Ohr, Derek Lamely 3:05 p.m.: Steve Marino, Rob Labritz, K.J. Choi 3:15 p.m.: John Merrick, K.T. Kim, Martin Laird 3:25 p.m.: Hiroyuki Fujita, Bubba Watson, Alvaro Quiros 3:35 p.m.: David Toms, Steve Elkington, Mark Brooks 3:45 p.m.: Michael Sim, Ryan Palmer, Matt Bettencourt 3:55 p.m.: Matt Jones, Brian Davis, Ricky Barnes 4:05 p.m.: D.J. Trahan, Edoardo Molinari, Thongchai Jaidee 4:15 p.m.: Marc Leishman, Fredik Jacobson, Brian Gay 4:25 p.m.: Rhys Davies, Ben Crane, Mark Sheftic 4:35 p.m.: Raphael Jacquelin, Ryan Benzel, Brendon De Jonge 4:45 p.m.: Sonny Skinner, David Horsey, George McNeill
-4 -4 -3 -3 -3 -2 -2 -2 -2 -2 -2 -2 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 E E E E E E E E E E E E
+1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +3 +3 +3 +3 +3 +3 +3 +6 +6 +6 +6 +4 +4 +4 +4 +4 +5 +5 +7 +7 +8
+10 +10
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