Monty leads way
MAMARONECK, N.Y. – Tiger Woods made his official, albeit inauspicious, return to golf.
Phil Mickelson officially put himself in position to win the third leg of his MickelSlam.
And American-golf foil Colin Montgomerie officially shocked the world by smiling in New York and taking the lead at a major tournament, as the first round of the U.S. Open got under way Thursday at Winged Foot Golf Club.
Woods struggled with his driving, hitting only three of 14 fairways, and he struggled even more on the greens, taking 33 putts on the bumpy and slower-than-expected greens. That added up to a 6-over-par 76 for Woods, who was seven shots off lead set by Montgomerie, who, at 69, was the only player to break par.
Mickelson, winner of the past two majors, had two birdies and two bogeys for a 70 and was in a five-way tie for second, with 2003 U.S. Open champion Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker, Spain’s Miguel Angel Jimenez and England’s David Howell, who double-bogeyed his final hole on 18.
Woods said he wasn’t affected too much by a nine-week layoff – his longest – but still, he started by bogeying the first three holes.
“No, I felt pretty good,” he said. “I expected to be on the rusty side, but I felt good. I started off swinging well. The only thing that got my round out to a bad start was adjusting to the greens. And once I did that, I was fine. But I was so far behind.”
Trying to play catch-up, Woods managed two birdies and finished with six bogeys and a double bogey. Mostly, he said, he had trouble getting used to the poa annua greens, which he grew up playing in California but of which he has never been a fan. Combined with that, he expected the greens to play at a faster pace, which is customary at a U.S. Open.
Unlike Woods, Montgomerie had little trouble on the greens – or with the fans.
Montgomerie took 28 putts (only 13 on the back nine) and never had a run-in with any hecklers, such as he did at the 1999 Ryder Cup at Brookline, Mass. For the Open in 2002 at Bethpage Black in New York, a golf magazine went so far as to issue “Be Nice to Monty” badges. The major-less Scot didn’t need them this time.
“Yes, it was fine,” said Montgomerie, who had four birdies and three bogeys. “We I had a lot of support. … We had a good group today, and there was no troubles or problems or whatever the case may be. I didn’t need my Golf Digest badge, thank goodness.”
Mickelson, who embraces the unconventional like a slice of pizza, showed why taking a different path can still lead to success.
As usual, he skipped his pre-major practice round on the course Wednesday. Instead, he practiced at Baltusrol in New Jersey, site of his PGA victory last August.
“I went and played Baltusrol, had some good memories, played with Doug Steffen, the head pro there. We went out afterwards and had some lunch and called it a day. It was a nice way to get ready for a big tournament round.”
Mickelson carried that relaxed demeanor back to Winged Foot. He struggled with his irons, hitting only eight greens. But his divine short game pulled him through. Mickelson made seven consecutive one-putts and finished with 27 total putts, 12 on the back nine.
“The greens are going to be very tough to hit here,” Mickelson said. “The ball was having a hard time getting stopped on these greens.”
Howell blew his chance of running away with the first round. He was 4 under through 14 holes, then bogeyed the 15th and 16th and three-putted the 18th for a double bogey to finish at even-par 70.
Vijay Singh, last week’s winner at the Barclays Classic, was in a group of seven at 71. Also tied with Singh were Mike Weir, Kevin Stadler, 48-year-old John Cook and 50-year-old Fred Funk.