Rory McIlroy got the better of Jordan Spieth in a battle of the world’s top two golfers on Thursday, but still found himself two shots off the Players Championship pace.
Former world No. 1 Tiger Woods, making his first start since the Masters last month, endured a mixed day that included two double bogeys and two bogeys, but with five birdies signed for a first-round one-over 73.
Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, Canadian David Hearn and US golfers Charley Hoffman and Kevin Na shared the lead at five-under 67 on a tightly bunched leaderboard in the US PGA Tour’s US$10 million flagship event at TPC Sawgrass in Florida.
Photo: AFP
They were one stroke in front of six players on 68: Troy Merritt, Ben Martin, Billy Horschel, Brendon Todd, Charles Howell and Derek Fathauer.
McIlroy headed a group of 14 players on 69 that also included Australians Jason Day and Marc Leishman, and Spain’s Sergio Garcia.
Northern Ireland’s McIlroy played alongside Spieth and Day and held up his end in the ballyhooed budding rivalry with Masters champion Spieth, who struggled to a three-over 75.
“I did feel sharp,” said McIlroy, who arrived in Florida off a victory in the World Golf Championships Match Play in California on Sunday last week and celebrated his 26th birthday on Monday.
McIlroy saw his conservative approach pay off in a steady round that included two birdies and an eagle and one bogey.
“It’s about staying patient,” said McIlroy, who teed off on 10 and made his first birdie at 15.
He promptly followed that with an eagle at the par-five 16th, where he landed his second shot within seven feet.
“There’s a lot of pars on my round, but I was able to pick off a couple of birdies and a nice eagle on 16, so pleased with the start,” McIlroy said.
However, Spieth could not say the same.
The man who mastered Augusta National so impressively four weeks ago for his first major title admitted he had lost trust in his swing.
“Just a really, really poor day,” he said after a round that included five bogeys. “I’ve got to find something to work on.”
“Sometimes when you’re hitting it really well you just get tough breaks and you have a bad day,” Spieth added. “This wasn’t one of those. I actually really need to find something on the range.”
Woods was less discouraged, even though his round included a shocking tee shot at the par-three eighth that he hit so poorly it went into a creek about 40 yards short of the green.
He was also in the water off the tee at 18 for another double-bogey, but said his one-over score was “probably the highest” he could have posted.
“I didn’t get much out of that round. I hit the ball better than the score indicates,” Woods said, but added that he struggled to hit his putts hard enough.
Still, Woods was hoping for better yesterday as he steps up his return from a layoff to rediscover a semblance of the form that took him to 14 major triumphs.
“I’m only six back — I’ve never seen the board this bunched. There’s a lot of guys who have got a chance going into the weekend,” he added.
“Hopefully I can put together some good rounds,” he said.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two