Padraig Harrington shot an 8-under 63 on Thursday and zoomed past Phil Mickelson and everyone else to take the first-round lead in the Nissan Open.
Harrington opened with three straight birdies. He ran off four in a row after making the turn, and even picked one up on the tough 15th hole when his 5-iron hit the pin and settled 1.2m away.
His only bogey on the back nine came from a three-putt on the par-3 14th, and the Irishman had a reasonable explanation for that.
"At this stage, I'm feeling invincible," he said. "I didn't think I was ever not going to make birdie."
It gave him a three-shot lead over Mickelson, Briny Baird and Pat Perez. Jim Furyk, Sergio Garcia and David Howell were among those in the group at 67 on a spectacular day of sunshine and shotmaking on the storied Riviera Country Club off Sunset Boulevard.
Six players failed to finish the first round when it was too dark to continue; they were to finish yesterday morning.
Mickelson is playing for the first time since 2001 at Riviera, where he has never had much success.
The only other time Howell has played Riviera was two years ago, when it took four days to complete 36 holes because of rain. The Englishman found conditions quite different this year, and he was duly impressed -- by Riviera and by Harrington.
"This is a great golf course," he said. "And that is a hell of a round."
Mickelson played with Ernie Els, one of several international stars making their first appearances on the US tour this season. Els labored to keep the ball in the fairway, but escaped with enough clutch pars -- getting up-and-down from 82m on his final hole -- for a 69 that left him pleased.
Even though it has been six years since Mickelson has been to Riviera, he still remembers a few tricks. With a back right pin on the short but tricky 10th hole, Mickelson still pounded a driver that landed on the green some 288m away and into a back bunker. His logic was to hit beyond the green, because it slopes to the back.
"Where I was, I at least had a chance to stop it," Mickelson said, and he left himself a 2.4m shot he made for birdie. "I haven't played here in years, and it's pretty obvious you've got to get past the hole."
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