Day 1: A prepared Weekley leads after opening with a 65
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Boo Weekley made the most of his time after missing the cut in the Memorial Tournament presented by Morgan Stanley, with his work around the greens at TPC Southwind paying off Thursday.
Combining his usual strong ballstriking with efficient putting, Weekley shot a 5-under 65 to take the first-round lead in the Stanford St. Jude Championship. He closed with a birdie on No. 18 to move a stroke ahead of Tommy Armour III.
"I went around there and hit a lot of putts Saturday and Sunday ...," Weekley said. "Being able to go and practice by yourself on a golf cart makes it a lot easier. You're not as tired, and you can work a little bit more out there."
Armour, who shot a 66, had been tied with Weekley at 5 under. But Armour bogeyed his 16th hole about the same time Weekley finished up with his birdie to take the lead to himself in the last tuneup for the U.S. Open.
Vijay Singh survived an afternoon roller-coaster featuring two bogeys, a double bogey, an eagle and five birdies for a 67. Sergio Garcia, THE PLAYERS Championship winner last month, and Davis Love III were among a group of seven at 68.
Jeff Overton had the lead to himself at 6 under with six birdies through 11 holes. But the Indiana native fell apart with two bogeys over his next three holes and then a double bogey on No. 15 after hitting his second shot way left of the green and failing to roll in a 2-footer. He wound up back at par with a 70.
Kenny Perry, coming off a victory Sunday in the Memorial Tournament, is hoping to win consecutive tournaments just as he did back in 2005. He started strong enough with a 32 on his first nine holes, the back nine. But he had four bogeys on the front nine to join defending champ Woody Austin at 71.
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QUOTE OF THE DAY
"I hum a little bit every now and then, or I'll laugh, just kind of laugh it off like just something bad happens. It's just golf. I mean, I don't know. I just do it. You handle it different situations different times. I mean, I'm aggravated out there all the time anyway." -- Boo Weekley, on his mental strategy and how he handles frustration on the course
SNEDEKER'S HOMECOMING
By Bobby Hall, Special to PGATOUR.com
MEMPHIS -- Without hesitation, Brandt Snedeker says he considers the Stanford St. Jude Championship as his "fifth major." Since Snedeker is from Nashville, playing a PGA TOUR event in his home state is a pretty big deal.
"It's huge for me," he said. "It's the only tournament we get to play in Tennessee. I've got a lot of friends coming over for the weekend."
So it was no surprise that Snedeker, who charmed the golf world this year at the Masters with his game and his easy-going demeanor, was a bit concerned after six holes of the first round Thursday at TPC Southwind. He was 2-over par on a tough course with unusually windy conditions.
All Snedeker could do was play his way out of that predicament, and he did -- shooting 3-under-par 32 on the back for a 1-under-par 69 that left him four strokes off the lead.
"Yeah, there's a little extra pressure for a good start," he said, thinking about all those people planning for a fun weekend.
| 72.47 | The scoring average from the morning groups. |
| 73.59 | The scoring average from the afternoon wave. |
| 7 | Number of players in the top 10 who teed off in the morning. As the day progressed, the course played tougher and only three from the afternoon pairings are in the top 10. |
The 27-year-old Snedeker, a former All-American at Vanderbilt, may not quite be a household name in world golf just yet -- or even in his native state -- despite his impressive tie for third at the Masters. As he approached the 18th green in Thursday's first round, the public address announcer called him "SNEE-deker."
"I've heard it pronounced quite a few different ways," he said with a laugh, "but that's a good one -- I haven't heard that one in a while. I don't think it's that hard because I've grown up with it, but some people have a problem with it."
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AUSTIN'S TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY
Defending champion Woody Austin arrived at the Stanford St. Jude Championship "hoping to find a little magic." He said he didn't have it in the first round, after shooting 1-over 71 in windy conditions on the firm and fast course.
"My golf game stinks. I played terrible," said Austin, who shot 8-under 62 in the final round last year at TPC Southwind for a five-shot victory margin. "Today was about as bad as I can play, and I hope I never play that bad again."
Austin's assessment was rather harsh, considering that through 13 holes he was 2-under and challenging for the lead.
"I had a Tiger Woods scoring game going until the last five holes and then I scored like myself coming in," he said.
Austin's trouble began at the treacherous par-3 14th, where he made double-bogey without finding the water.
"I could have shanked it in the water and still made the same score," Austin said.
He was too strong off the tee, flying the down-wind shot over the bunkers behind the green. His chip shot landed in a bunker. After blasting out, he two-putted.
"It wasn't that hard of a chip shot," he said. "The worst I should have made was a four -- it should have been an easy four, certainly not a five."
On the eve of the first round, Austin said he has struggled so far in 2008, despite two top-five finishes and earnings of $959,761.
"I guess the best way to describe it is that every bad swing is magnified and every good swing is un-rewarded," he said on Wednesday. "When I've played well, I've scored terrible, and when I've played bad, I've scored worse. I'm just hoping to find a little magic (in practice) and get ready for the first round."
After the first round, he wasn't cutting himself any slack.
"I played horrible, just pathetic," he said.
| The highest single-round scoring averages vs. par at TPC Southwind | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLEY'S WEEKEND
Boo Weekley missed the cut at the Memorial Tournament presented by Morgan Stanley last week. He's had a busy first half of the season -- Weekley has only missed three cuts in 15 events -- but there was no rest for this weary golfer. He booked an early trip to Memphis to get a head start on the competition.
In just two appearances at the Stanford St. Jude Championship, Weekley missed the cut in 2007 and tied for 19th in 2002. After the first round this year, Weekley is in the lead following an impressive 65.
"I like Memphis. Back down here to the South, and I like the people around here, and just being able to come out and play, you know, early, gives you -- might not be an advantage, but least gives you a little bit of a head start on what's going to happen the rest of the week," Weekley said. "And I think I took that to my advantage today, and the wind has been blowing the same since Saturday as it is today. Went out and played just like I did in the practice rounds."
Weekley, the 2008 Verizon Heritage winner, will play the U.S. Open, then he plans to take a short break.
"This one and the next tournament, the U.S. Open, (then) I'm done for a month. I'm going to take a month off," he said. "I got a newborn going to be here, and I want to take a little time and see if I can help out around the house."
INJURY REPORT
Fred Funk didn't need long to rehabilitate after arthroscopic knee surgery on May 14.
In his first tournament back since having the operation on his troublesome right knee, Funk is tied for 57th after one round.
Funk, who turns 51 next week, had planned to return at the Travelers Championship and play three straight weeks on the PGA TOUR before splitting the remainder of the season between the Champions Tour and PGA TOUR. Instead, he teed it up at the Stanford St. Jude Championship and is on the right path to make the cut.
Shaun Micheel, on the other hand, will miss the U.S. Open -- and potentially the rest of the season -- when he has left shoulder surgery next Tuesday. His torn labrum and biceps tendon causes a popping sound in his shoulder when he swings the golf club and has caused on-course struggles this season.
Micheel opted to postpone the surgery until after the Stanford St. Jude Championship, which takes place in his hometown of Memphis, Tenn. He is currently tied for 89th after the first day.
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THINGS TO WATCH ON FRIDAY
1. Davis Love III. Love had to qualify for the U.S. Open earlier this week but played his way into the tournament for his 18th consecutive appearance. Perhaps Love rode the momentum from sectional qualifying, as he is currently tied for fourth after one round in Memphis, Tenn., at the Stanford St. Jude Championship. After an up-and-down start to his season -- he has missed the cut four times and only finished inside the top 25 once -- is Love back on track?
2. David Duval. He hasn't made a cut all season. In fact, he hasn't played on the weekend since September 2007. Right now Duval is tied for 23rd, and hoping to stick around for two more days than he is used to lately.
3. Sergio Garcia. If not for a double bogey at No.3, Garcia could have had a blemish-free round. His four-birdie performance places him in a tie for fourth after one round, which means Garcia is still on a hot streak after his win at THE PLAYERS Championship.
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