Despite missing two easy birdie putts at the end of the round, J.L. Lewis didn't fret over what could have been and took his 10-under 62 for what it was -- his best start ever on the PGA Tour and a two-shot lead Thursday in the Funai Classic at Disney.
Lewis' only frustration was a 12-footer that lipped out on his 16th hole and a 5-footer that missed badly on the 18th.
PHOTO: AP
"I made most of them, so I'm pretty happy with it," Lewis said with slight resignation.
Scores are always so low at Disney that hardly anyone is satisfied with what they shot.
Vijay Singh got off to a solid start in his bid to win his fourth straight PGA Tour event, which would push him over the US$10 million mark this year. He had a bogey-free 66, then retreated to the practice range in balmy sunshine and spent a few hours searching for the slightest imperfections in his swing.
"It was a fighting round today. I managed to get it around," Singh said after his 17th round in the 60s in 21 trips around the Disney courses. He has never shot over par in the six years he has played at Disney.
Two-time Disney champion John Huston, Mark Hensby and Scott Hend each had a 64, while two-time Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal was among those at 65.
Lewis made his round sound simple.
"Nobody can explain golf, so I'm not going to try," he said. "I just try to hit each shot the best I can and get myself in a situation where hopefully, I'll have a chance to do something good on Sunday. That's all you can do."
It worked just fine Thursday.
Lewis birdied his first four holes to establish his name atop the leaderboard. He birdied five of the first six holes on his back nine to separate himself from the other early starters, then waited to see if anyone could catch him.
Hend got to 9 under before dropping a few shots on the back nine. Everyone else just tried to keep the scores respectable -- at Disney, that means something in the mid-60s -- as they work their way through the week.
"You just have to keep the momentum going," Huston said.
Singh has three more tournaments to crack the US$10 million mark, and it looks like he'll have no trouble doing that. Other players have smaller financial goals that mean just as much.
Hend is 132nd on the money list and needs a good week as he tries to finish the year in the top 125 to keep his card. Olazabal is also in jeopardy of losing his PGA Tour card for the first time since he joined in 2000. His five-year exemption from winning the Masters runs out this year.
The Spaniard is 148th on the money list, which explains why he is playing Disney for the first time.
"I'm just here to give myself the best possible chance," he said. "We'll see what happens."
Eight others joined Singh in the group at 66, from former British Open champion Ben Curtis to Wachovia winner Joey Sindelar to the resurgent Tom Lehman.
Tom Kite had seven birdies and an eagle amid standing water all around the course, and shot an 8-under-par 64 to take a one stroke lead after the first round Thursday in the tournament.
The players praised the revamped Sonoma course, but bemoaned the standing water still left over from Tuesday's rainstorm. The greens were difficult and the rough was murderous -- and yet the leaders still set a pace that could exceed Jim Thorpe's tournament-winning 20 under from last year, when the course was much easier.
Kite made the turn at 4 under and recovered from a bogey-5 at No. 15 with an eagle-3 on the next hole and closed out with a final birdie on 18.
Dana Quigley, savoring the victory of his beloved Boston Red Sox in Major League Baseball's playoffs, shot a 7-under 65 to be in second place.
"I told my wife this morning that I felt different today than in any first round I've ever played," Quigley said. "I couldn't pinpoint why, but I'm sure it's because my mind is somewhere else. My mind is on the Red Sox. It really has taken my mind off being nervous about golf."
Boston beat the New York Yankees 10-3 Wednesday to cap a comeback from a 3-games-to-none deficit to won the best-of-seven AL Championship Series.
Quigley and Kite played outstanding first rounds amid the standing water at Sonoma Golf Course on the first day of the tour's season-ending event, where the winner gets US$435,000 and the winner of the season-long Schwab Cup competition takes home a US$1 million annuity.
Hale Irwin, in third place with a 66, leads the Schwab Cup standings by 39 points over Craig Stadler, who matched Morris Hatalsky and Jose Maria Canizares with a 68.
While Quigley played bogey-free golf and Kite cruised with two exceptional long putts, Irwin struggled to keep up, making six par saves.
"I got a whole stack of flour to make some bread. I was grinding out there," said Irwin, a Cardinals fan who was born in Missouri and lived in St. Louis for many years. "If I'd had some grapes, I'd have made some wine."
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