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Stricker Seizes PGA Lead While Tiger Woeful
McIlroy Injured Early at PGA Championship
List of all-Time low Major Rounds of 63
Stricker Seizes PGA Lead While Tiger Woeful
ATLANTA, August 11, 2011 (AFP) - Steve Stricker matched the low round in major golf history, firing a seven-under par 63 on Thursday for a two-shot lead while Tiger Woods stumbled to a opening 77 at the 93rd PGA Championship.
Stricker, a 44-year-old American seeking his first major title after being a perennial contender, had a chance to become the first man to record a 62 in a major but missed a 10-foot birdie putt on the ninth hole, his last of the day.
"I realized it was for 62. I didn't realize it was for history," Stricker said. "It never really registered. I was just trying to make a birdie and never thought about the history of it. I hit a good putt. It just didn't go in."
Former World No. 1 and 14-time major winner Woods, in the second week of a comeback after a three-month injury layoff, fired his worst opening round in a major, matching the sixth-worst round of his career.
It was the worst round ever at a US-based major by the 14-time major champion and matched the second-worst of his career at any major event, the only worse major round his epic 10-over 81 at the 2002 British Open.
Jerry Kelly, a pal of fellow Wisconsinite Stricker, was second on 65 with American Shaun Micheel on the course at four-under through 15 holes.
American Scott Verplank was third on 63 with Australian Jason Day, a runner-up at this year's US Open and Masters, at three-under through 13 holes.
In the clubhouse on 68, five strokes adrift, were Italian teen star Matteo Manassero, Zimbabwe's Brendon de Jonge, Australian John Senden and Americans Davis Love, Bill Haas and Brandt Jobe.
No American has won a major title since Phil Mickelson at the 2010 Masters, a record US drought of six majors. If no US player hoists the Wanamaker Trophy on Sunday, 2011 will be the first year since 1994 with no US major winner.
Another drama was playing out at Atlanta Athletic Club as US Open champion Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland was playing with an injured right forearm and doing so better than many healthy rivals, standing one-under after 13 holes.
The prodigy, who made his major breakthrough two months ago at Congressional Country Club, hurt his right arm when blasting a 7-iron shot near a tree root on the third hole, on which he took a bogey.
McIlroy iced the forearm and had a medical trainer examine it amid fears he might have to withdraw, but he taped his right wrist and continued playing, making birdies on the par-5 fifth and par-4 sixth and answering a bogey at the eighth with a birdie at 12.
Stricker opened with three birdies in a row and added others at the 260-yard par-3 15th and par-4 18th, dominating over the four-hole stretch most players declared the course's toughest.
"I really had no expectations coming into the round," Stricker said. "I didn't make many birdies in practice. I really didn't know what to expect but I got it going."
He added birdies at the first and par-5 fifth and nearly added another to make history, instead firing the 25th 63 in majors history, the first at a PGA since Woods in 2007 in the second round of his victory at Southern Hills.
Woods, in his first major event after a three-month layoff, briefly grabbed a share of the lead after starting on the back nine and making birdies on three of his first five holes.
"I said, 'You know what, I'm feeling good, let's just let it go.' And it cost me the whole round," Woods said. "My shots don't shape like they used to."
Woods stumbled with a double bogey at 15, a bogey at 16, a double bogey at 18, back-to-back bogeys to start the front side, a bogey on four, then a birdie on five, double bogey on six and bogey to finish.
Former world number one Woods suffered left leg injuries in April at the Masters, aggravated them at the Players Championship in May before pulling out after nine holes and had not played a competitive round since until last week.
Woods, chasing the all-time record of 18 majors won by Jack Nicklaus, has not won any title since his infamous sex scandal erupted in November of 2009 and has not won a major since the 2008 US Open.
Woods is playing with boyhood pal Bryon Bell as his caddie after firing Steve Williams last month. Williams is now the bagman for Scott, who opened with a 69.
"Under-par around here is a good start," Scott said. "I was in position to have a really good score and dropped a couple coming in. Overall it's good. I think it's something I can build on for the week."
Also struggling was Japan's Ryo Ishikawa. The teen prodigy had a triple bogey, five double bogeys and two bogeys to finish on 15-over 85.
McIlroy Injured Early at PGA Championship, Stays in Hunt
ATLANTA, August 12, 2011 (AFP) - Reigning US Open champion Rory McIlroy battled singlehandedly through pain to fire a par 70 after injuring his right wrist on the third hole on Thursday in round one of the PGA Championship.
The 22-year-old from Northern Ireland considered quitting, concerned a bit about the damage he might have done playing with the injury, but stayed with it and managed four birdies and four bogeys at Atlanta Athletic Club.
"There were a couple of points where I thought about not continuing," said McIlroy. "But it's a very important tournament and I'm still in the hunt.
"To be honest, I finished with one hand."
McIlroy shared 23rd, seven strokes behind leader Steve Stricker, who posted a 63 to match the all-time low round in a major, a total McIlroy reached last year at the British Open at St. Andrews.
An MRI exam revealed McIlroy had suffered a strained tendon in his right wrist and he will wait until Friday morning after some practice range shots before deciding whether or not he will play the second round.
McIlroy is set to tee off at 8:35 in the morning off the 10th tee alongside the year's other major winners, British Open champion Darren Clarke of Northern Ireland and Masters champion Charl Schwartzel of South Africa.
McIlroy's mishap came on the third hole when he was forced to hit a shot near a tree root. He blasted the ball with a 7-iron and that's when the trouble began.
"It was dangerous," McIlroy said. "I thought if I could make contact with the ball and just let the club go, I might get away with it. In hindsight it would have been better to chip out sideways.
"It was a shot I felt like, if I took it on and pulled it off, it could have saved me a shot. But went through impact and held onto the club too long, jarred my right wrist and right forearm. It was very painful after that."
McIlroy, who inspired comparisons to 14-time major champion Tiger Woods in June in winning his first major title at Congressional Country Club, took a bogey at the fifth and favored his right hand the rest of the way, using his left to place balls on tees and even for the post-round handshakes.
"Through that sharp it was like a sharp pain up the forearm and then there was a little bit of swelling on the inside of my wrist, then it was going up my elbow and my shoulder.
"When I go through impact, they reckon my right arm, I've just caught the nerve in between the two bones. Every time I went through a shot I was in a lot of pain. Just going through impact it hurts a lot."
McIlroy led the Masters entering the final round but a woeful back-nine cost him a chance at the green jacket last April. That collapse helped him know what to do to hold onto a late lead in June.
McIlroy, who had shared third in his two prior PGA Championship starts, began the week among the favorites on an Atlanta Athletic Club course that played to his strengths.
During the round, McIlroy iced the arm and was examined by a medical trainer before having the wrist taped. He made birdies on the par-5 fifth and par-4 sixth and answered a bogey at the eighth with a birdie at 12.
McIlroy took a bogey at the tricky par-3 15th but answered with a birdie on 16 only to give back the shot on the par-3 17th.
PGA Championship Scores
ATLANTA, August 11, 2011 (AFP) - Scores on Thursday during the first round of the 93rd PGA Championship at par-70 Atlanta Athletic Club:
63 - Steve Stricker (USA) 33-30
65 - Jerry Kelly (USA) 33-32
66 - Shaun Micheel (USA) 32-34
67 - Scott Verplank (USA) 31-36
68 - Matteo Manassero (ITA) 33-35, Brendon de Jonge (ZIM) 34-34, Davis Love (USA) 34-34, John Senden (AUS) 33-35, Bill Haas (USA) 35-33, Brandt Jobe (USA) 34-34, Anders Hansen (DEN) 35-33
69 - Bob Sowards (USA) 35-34, Adam Scott (AUS) 35-34, Stewart Cink (USA) 32-37, Brendan Steele (USA) 34-35, Brian Davis (ENG) 34-35, Miguel Angel Jimenez (ESP) 35-34
70 - Gary Woodland (USA) 35-35, Jason Dufner (USA) 38-32, Luke Donald (ENG) 36-34, Nick Watney (USA) 34-36, Robert Garrigus (USA) 36-34, Alexander Noren (SWE) 33-37, KJ Choi (KOR) 36-34, Pablo Larrazabal (ESP) 35-35, Jhonattan Vegas (VEN) 34-36, Robert Karlsson (SWE) 36-34
71 - Ross Fisher (ENG) 38-33, Phil Mickelson (USA) 35-36, Spencer Levin (USA) 36-35, Peter Hanson (SWE) 34-37, Keegan Bradley (USA) 38-33, Bill Lunde (USA) 35-36, Jim Furyk (USA) 34-37, Steve Marino (USA) 34-37, Yang Yong-eun (KOR) 36-35, Johan Edfors (SWE) 35-36, Johnson Wagner (USA) 37-34
72 - Tetsuji Hiratsuka (JPN) 35-37, John Rollins (USA) 36-36, Andres Romero (ARG) 34-38, Angel Cabrera (ARG) 35-37, David Toms (USA) 37-35, Paul Casey (ENG) 36-36, Charles Howell (USA) 35-37, Stuart Smith (USA) 35-37, David Horsey (ENG) 37-35, Martin Kaymer (GER) 37-35, Sergio Garcia (ESP) 35-37, Chris Kirk (USA) 37-35, Brian Gay (USA) 34-38
73 - Charlie Wi (KOR) 36-37, Kevin Streelman (USA) 36-37, Martin Laird (SCO) 36-37, Bo Van Pelt (USA) 36-37, Scott Stallings (USA) 36-37, Alvaro Quiros (ESP) 38-35, Padraig Harrington (IRL) 36-37, Mark Brooks (USA) 37-36, Brad Lardon (USA) 39-34, Yuta Ikeda (JPN) 38-35, Hiroyuki Fujita (JPN) 38-35, Mike Small (USA) 36-37, Rory Sabbatini (RSA) 36-37, Steve Elkington (AUS) 37-36
74 - Stephen Gallacher (SCO) 35-39, Ian Poulter (ENG) 38-36, Bubba Watson (USA) 42-32, Sean Dougherty (USA) 37-37, JJ Henry (USA) 35-39, Thomas Bjorn (DEN) 35-39, Fredrik Andersson Hed (SWE) 35-39, Anthony Kim (USA) 40-34, Ernie Els (RSA) 37-37, Rickie Fowler (USA) 40-34, Brandt Snedeker (USA) 38-36, Rich Beem (USA) 33-41
75 - Ryan Moore (USA) 39-36, Edoardo Molinari (ITA) 40-35, Jeff Overton (USA) 36-39, Jeff Sorenson (USA) 37-38, Webb Simpson (USA) 37-38, Marty Jertson (USA) 38-37, Dustin Johnson (USA) 38-37, Charley Hoffman (USA) 37-38, Ryuji Imada (JPN) 36-39
76 - Craig Stevens (USA) 40-36, Vijay Singh (FIJ) 35-41, David Hutsell (USA) 37-39, Gregory Bourdy (FRA) 37-39
77 - Mike Northern (USA) 38-39, Faber Jamerson (USA) 36-41, Liang Wen-Chong (CHN) 40-37, Tiger Woods (USA) 40-37, John Daly (USA) 38-39, Jerry Pate (USA) 38-39, Aaron Baddeley (AUS) 37-40, Jamie Donaldson (WAL) 35-42
78 - Brendan Jones (AUS) 38-40, Arjun Atwal (IND) 35-43, Rob Moss (USA) 40-38, Dan Olsen (USA) 38-40, Jose Maria Olazabal (ESP) 38-40, Larry Nelson (USA) 41-37
79 - Rocco Mediate (USA) 39-40, Richard Green (AUS) 39-40
80 - JB Holmes (USA) 38-42, Scott Erdmann (USA) 37-43
81 - Danny Balin (USA) 41-40, Tommy Gainey (USA) 38-43
85 - Ryo Ishikawa (JPN) 40-45
PGA Championship Pairings
ATLANTA, August 12, 2011 (AFP) - Tee times and pairings for Friday's second round of the 93rd PGA Championship (USA unless noted):
1st tee
7:30am (1130 GMT): Pablo Larrazabal (ESP), Brad Lardon, Steve Marino
7:40: Mike Small, Chris Kirk, Johan Edfors (SWE)
7:50: Anders Hansen (DEN), Johnson Wagner, Rory Sabbatini (RSA)
8:00: Charley Hoffman, Ryuji Imada (JPN), Brian Gay
8:10: Jose Maria Olazabal (ESP), Robert Karlsson (SWE), Brandt Snedeker
8:20: Larry Nelson, Rich Beem, Steve Elkington (AUS)
8:30: Ryan Palmer, Robert Allenby (AUS), Harrison Frazar
8:40: Mark Wilson, Retief Goosen (RSA), Tom Gillis
8:50: Simon Dyson (ENG), Trevor Immelman (RSA), Bryce Molder
9:00: D.A. Points, Fredrik Jacobson (SWE), Thomas Aiken (RSA)
9:10: Robert McClellan, Raphael Jacquelin (FRA), Michael Bradley
9:20: Kyung-Tae Kim (KOR), Ben Crane, Brian Cairns
9:30: Todd Camplin, Kevin Na, Scott Piercy
12:45pm (16:45 GMT): Tetsuji Hiratsuka (JPN), Ryan Moore, Bob Sowards
12:55: Gary Woodland, Mike Northern, Stephen Gallacher (SCO)
1:05: Adam Scott (AUS), Ryo Ishikawa (JPN), Matteo Manassero (ITA)
1:15: Angel Cabrera (ARG), Stewart Cink, Ross Fisher (ENG)
1:25: David Toms, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh (FIJ)
1:35: Luke Donald (ENG), Alvaro Quiros (ESP), Nick Watney
1:45: Tiger Woods, Davis Love, Padraig Harrington (IRL)
1:55: Ian Poulter (ENG), Bubba Watson, Jeff Overton
2:05: Jim Furyk, K.J. Choi (KOR), Thomas Bjorn (DEN)
2:15: Paul Casey (ENG), Miguel Angel Jimenez (ESP), Steve Stricker
2:25: J.B. Holmes, Bill Haas, Charles Howell
2:35: Stuart L. Smith, Jerry Kelly, Scott Verplank
2:45: Brandt Jobe, Fredrik Andersson Hed (SWE), Dan Olsen
10th tee
7:35am (11:35 GMT): Scott Erdmann, Yuta Ikeda (JPN), David Horsey (ENG)
7:45: Marty Jertson, Richard Green (AUS), Hiroyuki Fujita (JPN)
7:55: Anthony Kim, Jhonattan Vegas (VEN), Ernie Els (RSA)
8:05: Shaun Micheel, Martin Kaymer (GER), Yang Yong-eun (KOR)
8:15: Rickie Fowler, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia (ESP)
8:25: Louis Oosthuizen (RSA), Hunter Mahan, Justin Rose (ENG)
8:35: Rory McIlroy (NIR), Darren Clarke (NIR), Charl Schwartzel (RSA)
8:45: Matt Kuchar, Lee Westwood (ENG), Jason Day (AUS)
8:55: Geoff Ogilvy (AUS), Zach Johnson, Graeme McDowell (NIR)
9:05: Lucas Glover, Camilo Villegas (COL), Francesco Molinari (ITA)
9:15: Jonathan Byrd, Heath Slocum, Ricky Barnes
9:25: Sean O'Hair, Cameron Tringale, Steve Schneiter
9:35: Jeff Coston, Seung-yul Noh (KOR), D.J. Trahan
12:40pm (16:40 GMT): Craig Stevens, Brendon de Jonge (ZIM), John Rollins
12:50: Danny Balin, Andres Romero (ARG), Tommy Gainey
1:00: Faber Jamerson, Charlie Wi (KOR), Kevin Streelman
1:10: Edoardo Molinari (ITA), Jason Dufner, Liang Wen-Chong (CHN)
1:20: Brendan Jones (AUS), Martin Laird (SCO), Brendan Steele
1:30: Spencer Levin, David Hutsell, Peter Hanson (SWE)
1:40: Brian Davis (ENG), Keegan Bradley, Bill Lunde
1:50: John Senden (AUS), Bo Van Pelt, Scott Stallings
2:00: John Daly, Mark Brooks, Jerry Pate
2:10: Aaron Baddeley (AUS), Arjun Atwal (IND), Rocco Mediate
2:20: Jeff Sorenson, Robert Garrigus, Jamie Donaldson (WAL)
2:30: Gregory Bourdy (FRA), Sean Dougherty, Webb Simpson
2:40: Alexander Noren (SWE), J.J. Henry, Rob Moss
List of all-Time low Major Rounds of 63
ATLANTA, August 11, 2011 (AFP) - All-time list of record low major 18-hole rounds of 63, which reached 25 when American Steve Stricker matched the mark Thursday in the first round of the 93rd PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club:
Masters
Nick Price, 1986, third round (9-under)
Greg Norman, 1996, first round (9-under)
US Open
Johnny Miller, 1973 (Oakmont), final round (8-under)
Jack Nicklaus, 1980 (Baltusrol), first round (7-under)
Tom Weiskopf, 1980 (Baltusrol), first round (7-under)
Vijay Singh, 2003 (Olympia Fields), second round (7-under)
British Open
Mark Hayes, 1977 (Turnberry), second round (7-under)
Isao Aoki, 1980 (Muirfield), third round (8-under)
Greg Norman, 1986 (Turnberry), second round (7-under)
Paul Broadhurst, 1990 (St. Andrews), third round (9-under)
Jodie Mudd, 1991 (Birkdale), final round (7-under)
Nick Faldo, 1993 (St. George’s), final round (7-under)
Payne Stewart, 1993 (St. George’s), final round (7-under)
Rory McIlroy, 2010 (St. Andrews), first round (9-under)
PGA Championship
Bruce Crampton, 1975 (Firestone), second round (7-under)
Raymond Floyd, 1982 (Southern Hills), first round (7-under)
Gary Player, 1984 (Shoal Creek), second round (9-under)
Vijay Singh, 1993 (Inverness), second round (8-under)
Michael Bradley, 1995 (Riviera), first round (8-under)
Brad Faxon, 1995 (Riviera), final round (8-under)
Jose Maria Olazabal, 2000 (Valhalla), third round (9-under)
Mark O’Meara, 2001 (Atlanta Athletic Club), second round (7-under)
Thomas Bjorn, 2005 (Baltusrol), third round (7-under)
Tiger Woods, 2007 (Southern Hills), second round (7-under)
Steve Stricker, 2011 (Atlanta Athletic Club), first round (7-under)