NORTON, September 2, 2011 (AFP) - Troy Matteson fired a six-under par 65 on Friday to seize a one-stroke lead after the first round of the $8 million Deutsche Bank Championship, the second event of the US PGA playoffs.
The American opened on the 10th hole with a bogey but followed with seven birdies, the last a 27-footer on the ninth hole, to nudge into the lead in the event that decides which 70 players remain in the overall playoff title hunt.
"The day was pretty much making a few short putts and making a long one at the last," Matteson said. "I look at it like the end of the school year. The end of the (season) is almost here, so let's just see what happens."
World No. 1 Luke Donald of England, Masters champion Charl Schwartzel of South Africa, South Korean Yang Yong-Eun and US veteran Jerry Kelly were each on 66 with Australian Jason Day among seven players another stroke adrift.
Schwartzel, who turned 27 two days ago, skipped the opening event of the playoffs and slid from 21st to 28th in the points fight, with only the top 30 reaching the season-ending Tour Championship in Atlanta in three weeks.
He missed a hurricane-shortened event to stay an extra week in South Africa but still likes his chances at the $10 million ultimate prize.
"I was sitting in South Africa in the sunshine and watching guys struggle through the hurricanes and all the things happening," Schwartzel said. "But by missing an event you do put yourself a little bit on the back foot.
"It just worked out that that was the one that I could maybe afford to take off. To win (the playoff prize) you basically need to win one of these events, so I figured I’ll take my chances in the three coming up."
Schwartzel opened and closed his round with birdies and added two more on both the front and back nines, taking his lone bogey at the par-4 fifth hole.
Matteson struggled in warming up but found his form as the round went on.
"This morning warming up, I would have said if I could have kept it under 80, I would have been doing pretty good," Matteson said. "Bogeyed my first hole right out of the gate. That didn't really set the tone very well for the day.
"So I looked at my caddie and said, 'We're just going to focus on making some birdies. The birdie count hasn't quite been where we needed it.'
"Before you know it, the first hole we birdied was (14), a long par-4. Then we birdied 17, then we birdied 18. It's like, well, this day is turning around a little bit."
He opened and closed the front nine, his second nine of the day, with birdies and birdied the par-3 third and par-5 seventh as well.
"Your expectations probably lower a little bit, then all of a sudden you make a few birdies, and it's like, well, that's not too bad, then you make a few more," Matteson said.
"By the end of the day you're thinking, 'How in the world did that day turn out the way it did?'"
Kelly, who also began on the 10th tee, answered his lone bogey at the par-3 16th by sandwiching an eagle at the par-5 18th between two birdied before parring his way to the clubhouse.
Yang, another back-nine starter, birdied the 12th and 14th holes as well as the 18th, then ran off three birdies in a row starting at the par-5 second hole before taking his lone bogey at the fifth.
Donald opened with a birdie but followed with a bogey at the par-5 second. He answered with birdies at the third and fourth holes, another at the seventh and began the back nine with back-to-back birdies before paring in from there.
Scores on Friday after the first round of the $8 million US PGA Deutsche Bank Championship (par-71, USA unless noted):
65 - Troy Matteson
66 - Jerry Kelly, Charl Schwartzel (RSA), Yang Yong-Eun (KOR), Luke Donald (GBR)
67 - Jason Day (AUS), Nick Watney, Chez Reavie, George McNeill, Steve Marino, Jonathan Byrd, Rory Sabbatini (RSA)
68 - Scott Piercy, Kyle Stanley, Keegan Bradley, Jason Dufner, Hunter Mahan, Dustin Johnson, John Rollins, Bill Lunde, Brendon de Jonge (ZIM), Cameron Tringale, Ryan Moore, Zach Johnson, Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler
...
69 - Carl Pettersson (SWE), Adam Scott (AUS), Geoff Ogilvy (AUS), Padraig Harrington (IRL)
70 - John Senden (AUS), Robrt Allenby (AUS), Brian Davis (GBR), KJ Choi (KOR), Phil Mickelson, Justin Rose (GBR), Ernie Els (RSA)
71 - Marc Leishman (AUS), Andres Romero (ARG), Graeme McDowell (NIR), Sergio Garcia (ESP), Jhonattan Vegas (VEN), Martin Laird (GBR)
72 - Aaron Baddeley (AUS), Ian Poulter (GBR), Greg Chalmers (AUS)
73 - Camilo Villegas (COL), Charlie Wi (KOR), Ryuji Imada (JPN)
74 - Robert Karlsson (SWE), Fredrik Jacobson (SWE)
75 - Vijay Singh (FIJ)
78 - Trevor Immelman (RSA)
WD - Scott Verplank 78