Woods one back in lightning-delayed Byron Nelson
By RON SIRAK / AP Golf Writer
IRVING, Texas (AP) - There was electricity in the air when
Tiger Woods returned to the PGA Tour and he provided a jolt of
his own with a 6-under-par 64, one stroke off Jim Furyk's lead
in the GTE Byron Nelson Classic.
The crackle Thursday was from lightning that stopped play for
3 hours and 40 minutes before Woods teed off in his first competitive
round since his record-setting victory in the Masters a month
ago.
But the highly charged atmosphere was as much from Woods' eagerly
awaited return as it was from the overly excited ions snapping
in the area. And the 21-year-old sensation did not disappoint.
Woods was welcomed to the first tee at the TPC course at the
Four Season Resort and Club with a wild, whistling ovation and
shouts of "Go Tiger."
He snapped from his stoic stare and beamed that now familiar
smile that outshone the sun that fought its way out from behind
the rain clouds.
"I was pretty nervous out there," Woods said about
his reception on No. 1. "I had the jitterbugs. It was nice
to feel that again. I just wanted to shoot something under par."
Then he thrilled the record gallery by rolling in a 15-foot
putt on No. 1 to birdie his first hole back on tour and added
consecutive birdies on Nos. 5, 6, 7 and 8 to turn the front nine
at 5-under-par 30.
"I just wanted to get off to a good start," he said.
"And obviously I did.'
Woods got to 6-under with a birdie on No. 10, made consecutive
bogeys on Nos. 11 and 12 when he had bunker trouble, but birdied
No. 16 and ended with a birdie on No. 18 to share second place
with Dudley Hart and Paul Stankowski.
Five of Woods' birdies came on putts of 6 feet or less as he
showed wonderful distance control for a player who had been away
from competition for so long.
"I had a lot more feel than I thought I would today,"
Woods said. "I think that shows that my swing is in a better
spot than it has been."
Furyk, who played the Cottonwood course and was returning from
a break of his own, went out in 30 and birdied the final hole
for his 63.
"I just had a couple of weeks off," Furyk said. "I
jumped right in there and hit my irons well, chipped well and
putted well - all things I had been working on."
Unlike Woods, who played before a massive gallery, Furyk said
he had "about 10 people" following him.
Not teeing off until 3:30 p.m. CDT, Woods raced the sun and
managed to finish before darkness fell. Thirty of the 156 were
still on the course when Woods finished.
Only the fact that both the TPC course and the Cottonwood layout
were in use for the first two rounds made it possible for as many
players to finish after the lengthy delay.
Tom Watson, Lee Rinker, Eric Johnson, Kevin Sutherland and
Chris Perry were knotted at 65. Defending champion Phil Mickelson,
Nick Faldo and Justin Leonard were in a bunch at 66.
Woods' return ended a stretch of rest and relaxation since
he won the Masters by a record 12 strokes in April. He skipped
four consecutive tour events but now will likely play three weeks
in a row and then skip a week as he gets ready for his next major
challenge, the U.S. Open outside Washington D.C. in June.
"Each round I'll get better and better with my mental
state," state," Woods said before a shaky 74 in Wednesday's
pro-am. "It took me about a round to get my focus and my
intensity," he said about the last time he returned from
a break this lengthy.
This return, though delayed by the elements on Thursday, seemed
to be progressing just as Woods planned.
DIVOTS: Woods has the second-longest streak of consecutive
cuts made on the PGA Tour with 17 dating to his miss at the Masters
last year. Mark O'Meara also has made 17 straight cuts. Vijay
Singh, who is not playing the Nelson, has the longest active streak
at 35. The record is 113 by Byron Nelson in the 1940s. ... Play
was suspended by lightning in the area at 9:21 a.m. and resumed
at 1 p.m. ... Ben Crenshaw, from Austin, was a big hit with the
Texas fans, drawing a huge roar when he was announced on the first
tee and one yell of, "Forget Tiger Woods." Crenshaw
responded by giving the University of Texas hook 'em horns sign
as he walked down the fairway. ... Johnson was the first alternate
and didn't find out until 7:45 a.m. that Todd Dempsey had dropped
out with a bad back. Johnson then shot his best round on the PGA
Tour. ... Mark Calcavecchia and Sandy Lyle had their wives caddying
for them.
|
