MASTERS
Rose again leading Masters
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Photo gallery: Masters Golf |
By Doug Ferguson
Associated Press
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AUGUSTA, Ga. — The Masters had a familiar feel yesterday, from the warmth of a spring garden to the pockets of cheers that celebrated spectacular shots, even to some of the names on the leaderboard.
Justin Rose was at the top after 18 holes, the third straight time he's managed that.
Tiger Woods couldn't break 70 on the first day for the 12th straight year.
The four-time Masters champion failed to make a birdie at Augusta National for the first time since the opening round in 2003, although there was no reason to panic. He chipped in for eagle from 25 feet behind the 15th green to salvage an even-par 72, leaving him four shots behind Rose and co-leader Trevor Immelman.
Woods didn't sound terribly worried.
"I played a lot better than what my score indicates," he said. "I kept myself in the tournament. I'm right there."
So is Rose, and that's becoming a tradition like no other at the Masters — at least on Thursday.
The 27-year-old Englishman overcame a sluggish start with four straight birdies that carried him to a 68. The trick now is to figure out how to stay there over the next three days.
Rose led through 36 holes in 2004 until stumbling to an 81 in the third round. He was tied for the lead after 18 holes last year and stayed in the hunt all week until a late collapse on Sunday.
"Eventually you've got to say, 'OK, it's time to step up,' " Rose said. "But I'm not putting too much pressure on myself."
Pressure might come from the course.
Unlike last year, when Augusta was brisk and brittle and the scores were among the highest in history, a warm afternoon of sunshine and only a light breeze brought back some of the scoring — and sounds of cheering — on the fabled course.
"I think the golf course is right where they want it," Rose said. "They can take it whichever direction they would like. If they want to create some birdies, they can do that. And if they want to make par a good score, that could be done. It's probably perfect right now."
Immelman played that way, keeping bogeys off his card in his best start at the Masters. Perhaps it was only a coincidence that Rose, Immelman and Ian Poulter made a weekend getaway to Augusta last month for practice.
Poulter was at 70 and drew the loudest cheer with his hole-in-one on the 16th hole.
Masters rookie Brian Bateman, Brandt Snedeker and Lee Westwood were at 69, with defending champion Zach Johnson, Jim Furyk and Stephen Ames among those in the group at 70.
There were a few surprises, such as 51-year-old Mark O'Meara, who celebrated the 10-year anniversary of his green jacket with a 71. And among the familiar faces were Phil Mickelson, the '04 and '06 champion, who opened with an amazing birdie and settled for a 71.
There also was a familiar sound — a few of those Augusta roars — even if Woods didn't hear them.
"The way the golf course plays now, you don't really shoot low rounds here anymore," Woods said. "You've just got to plod along. It's playing more of a U.S. Open than it is a Masters. There was really one roar I heard all day, and that was Poulter's eagle. But other than that, it was really quiet."
Woods must not have been listening closely to a few familiar sounds on a warm, spring afternoon in golf's prettiest garden:
"It was at least a two-shot swing, possibly three," Mickelson said.
"That was a special moment," he said. "The hairs on the back of my neck were standing up. It was great."
There was a big ovation again for Arnold Palmer, smacking his ceremonial tee shot so far that he never saw it land — but that was only because of soupy fog that caused a one-hour delay. More cheers followed Gary Player up the 18th fairway as the three-time Masters champion set a record by playing for the 51st time. He shot 83.
"I heard some roars today," Arron Oberholser said after a 71, despite playing with injuries that will keep him out for two months after this tournament is over. "But this is about as easy as it's going to play for the week."
Rose was 2 over through four holes until making a slippery 6-foot birdie on the sixth, the first of his four straight birdies. He added two more on the 12th and 13th, and settled into pars the rest of the way to join some elite company — Palmer, Player, Jack Nicklaus and Lloyd Mangrum are the only other players to have a first-round lead at least three times at the Masters.
Now if the Englishman can only figure out how to finish.
"I seem to throw the home run early," Rose said. "I've gone out there today with a really relaxed frame of mind, and that's obviously what I've got to recreate the rest of the week."
Woods will try to repeat some history himself. In the four years he has won the Masters, he has trailed by at least three shots after the first round — seven shots after 18 holes in 2005, his most recent title.
"I feel good about how I played all day," Woods said. "I hit the ball really well. I hit a lot of good putts that just didn't go in. That's just the way it goes. I've got to stay patient out there, and hopefully it will turn."
