Henrik Stenson fired a six-under 64 to grab the lead at the Tour Championship in an opening round in which world No. 1 Tiger Woods finished a disappointing second to last.
Sweden’s Stenson, who played in the final group with Woods, birdied the last hole on Thursday in a round that included seven birdies and one bogey at the East Lake Golf Club.
Stenson started quickly with five birdies in a six-hole stretch from the second to grab the lead in the final tournament of the PGA Tour’s playoff series.
Photo: EPA
His hot streak consisted of just two putts from outside five feet as he stuck the majority of his iron shots close to the pin.
“That stretch between one and seven I guess is as good as I’ve ever hit it in a round of golf,” said Stenson, who tied his career low nine-hole score with a 30.
Stenson, who won the Deutsche Bank Championship earlier this month, can capture the FedEx Cup if he can hang on to his lead for the rest of the tournament.
Stenson’s playing partner Woods was the only golfer not to post a birdie in the first round. The American struggled to a three-over 73 which put him 29th out of 30 players. The only player to shoot a worse score was PGA Championship winner Jason Dufner, who carded a 74.
Australia’s Adam Scott is in sole possession of second place following his five-under 65, while Steve Stricker and Billy Horschel of the US share third at four-under 66.
Roberto Castro shot a 67 to sit alone in fifth.
Reigning FedEx Cup winner Brandt Snedeker had a one-under 69 and is in a tie for 14th place.
Horschel parred his final four holes to hold the clubhouse lead for a while.
“It all comes down to putting the ball in the fairway. I think if you’re in the rough it’s hard to judge whether it’s going to come out flying or it’s going to come out dead and you can’t control the spin,” Horschel said. “I did a good job putting the ball in the fairway, which gave me an opportunity to attack the flag.”
Playing in the penultimate group ahead of Stenson, Scott stormed up the leaderboard with a sizzling back nine.
The Masters champion countered bogeys at the third and eighth with a birdie at the sixth to make the turn at one-over, then poured in six birdies over a seven-hole stretch from the 10th to grab a share of the lead.
“This is always a tricky course,” Scott said. “If you’re playing well, there’s a good chance to score and if you’re playing bad it’s really tough to score out there.”
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and