Posted on: Saturday, January 19, 2002
GOLF
Kite opens with record round
By Bill Kwon
Special to The Advertiser
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| Tom Kite watches his tee shot on the ninth en route to a tournament record 9-under-par 63.
Associated Press |
KA'UPULEHU, Kona — In a day when capricious winds blew, changed directions 180 degrees and then, at times, even totally stopped, the first-round leader of the MasterCard Championship had to be the most aptly named golfer.
Tom Kite.
Kite posted two eagles to shoot a tournament record 9-under-par 63 to take a three-stroke lead over defending champion Larry Nelson going into today's second round at the Hualalai Golf Club.
Twenty-one of the 33-player field bettered par with Doug Tewell, Bob Gilder and Jim Colbert shooting 67s. Five others were at 68, including Bruce Lietzke, Walter Hall and Bobby Wadkins, three of nine golfers making their first appearance in the winners-only event.
"Starting the day, I don't think any of us expected the scored to be this low," Kite said.
With everyone starting on the back nine, the trade winds were blowing 25-35 mph. With that in mind, PGA Tour officials shortened the par-5 fourth hole by 10 yards because it plays into the wind and figured to let nature take care of the rest.
Then the wind switched from trade (northeasterly) to kona (southerly).
"I couldn't believe it," said Tewell, who was on the 16th hole (his seventh of the day). When he hit his tee shot, the wind was right to left.
When he went to his his second shot, the wind was left to right.
"It caught everyone by surprised," said Kite, who shook his head at the par-4 15th. His drive was with the wind, his second shot, by the time he got to his ball, was into it.
Suddenly, the hard holes became easier and the easy holes became ridiculously easier.
"That's part of the reason for the good scores," Kite said.
The shortened par-5 fourth, was the best example. By the time the players got to it, it played downwind instead of into the wind, resulting in six eagles and 17 birdies. No one bogeyed it.
The other par-5 on the front nine, No. 7, played the second easiest yesterday, again because of the opposite but suddenly favorable wind.
Not that Kite was complaining.
Thanks to eagles at the fourth and seventh holes, the 52-year-old Texan strung together five straight 3s on his scorecard from holes four through eight.
"I've had five 3s in a row before, but never had them with par-5s in there," he said.
"It (the fourth hole) played very short today," said Kite, who hit a 7-iron from 178 yards out to within 12 feet for his eagle. He chipped in from the back fringe at the seventh hole after a 3-wood from 276 yards got him there.
"I don't make too many eagles," said Kite, who nonetheless had two eagles in a round in his final event of the 2001 season at the Senior Tour Championship.
What's more of a good omen is that the other time Kite recorded two eagles in a round, he won the tournament. That was in the Gold Rush Classic.
But Kite will be first to agree with Nelson that tournaments — even 54-hole ones — aren't won on a Friday.
"But it's always good to have a good start on Friday," said Nelson, who also eagled the fourth hole for his 6-under 66 despite a bogey at his second hole of the day.
"Here we are, like last year, trying to beat Larry Nelson again," said Tewell, who played with the defending champion. "I'm pleased to have a good round of Friday. I've struggled on my Friday rounds," he said.
Four groups later, Kite sailed in with his record round.
The previous tournament record of 8-under 64 was shared by Gil Morgan, Hale Irwin, John Jacobs, Nelson and Fred Gibson.
NOTES: When Doug Tewell was told that he recorded the first hole-in-one in the 19-year history of the tournament, he was surprised. "You're kidding. Does it get me a week at this hotel?" referring to the Four Seasons at Hualalai where the pros are staying for the MasterCard Championship. Tewell used a 4-iron to ace the 208-yard eighth hole. It was his 11th ace, all made on the tour. ... It was homecoming for Steve Veriato, the Hilo native who won the Novell Utah Showdown for his first PGA victory last year to qualify for the winners-only event at the Hualalai Resort. Veriato shot an even-par 72. Veriato's 12-person gallery included his mom, Margaret, brother Franklin and sister Val. ... If the par-5 fourth was the easiest hole of the day with an average score of 4.121, the par-4 ninth hole played the most difficult in the first round with a scoring average of 4.121. ... Former Kapalua Resort pro Dick McClean was the marker accompanying two-time winner (1990 and 1992) George Archer, who was the first off the tee yesterday as the odd man in the pairings for the 33-player field.
