US PGA Day 1 - As it happened
Thursday, 13 August 2009The first round of the 91st US PGA has been completed at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota.
12.58am - And that's about it for the first day's play from the US PGA at Hazeltine. Should be a very interesting day ahead on Friday with the weather set to worsen as the day progresses, which will suit the early starters. So keep and eye on Singh, Toms, Donald, Ogilvy, Poulter and Kjeldsen. And don't forget Cink. Expect big things from the Open Champion on Friday.
12.54am - Luke Donald finishes with par to sign for a decent 71, one-under-par.
12.45am - Kjeldsen in for two under with a very up and down round which was ruined by a string of bogeys. Still in the mix for a shot at the title.
12.34am - Toms finishes on three under to give himself a great chance going into Friday and beyond.
12.28am - Cink finishes on one over and would be a very good outside bet for the tournament considering the start he had today. Great round for Lucas Glover as well finishing on one under.
12.20am - Poulter finished with two bogeys and signs for a level par 72. He'll be disappointed with the finish but a good early round in the morning could put some pressure on the leaders.
12.11pm Cink remarkably back to one over after being five over after five holes. Birdie on the last would make for an amazing comeback. Toms also up to three under and should be in contention at the weekend.
12.10am Starting to wind down now for the day as the last few groups finish up. Vijay left with a tricky par putt on 18th to go in three under. No problem for Vijay who signs for a 69 three under.
12.07am - Darren Clarke finishes on six over. Not a great day for Clarke after the other three Irish shot under par.
12.04am - First sign of Jimenez all day - three over 75, he'll need to shoot low tomorrow to have any chance of getting into contention. Poulter drops one on the 17th leaving him on one under going up the final hole.
23.59pm - Vijay tees off on the final hole looking for a birdie to finish the day in joint second alongside Harrington.
23.58pm - Ogilvy finishes with a 71 one under par. Decent round and very much in contention.
23.51pm - Vijay back to three under. Having a great round and should have the best of conditions in the morning.
23.50pm Word coming through that John Daly has retired injured with a back problem. Makes sense after watching some of the shots he has played today.
23.41pm - Daly four putts to move out to six over. Looks like he'd rather be anywhere other than on that course at the moment.
23.38pm - Poulter sets up another birdie cahnce on 16, while Mickelson is having another tricky hole going way left on his second at 15.
23.30pm John Daly is playing brilliant and terrible. Some of his putting has been unbelieveably bad. Back out to four over now. Ogilvy back to one under now.
23.22pm - Ogilvy misses another very gettable birdie putt. Stays on two under but could easily be up there knocking on Tiger's door.
23.15pm - Toms sinks a beauty to get back to two under.
23.10pm - It looks like Darren Clarke will be missing the weekend's action as he now sits on five over after 16.
23.08pm John Daly on four over hits a monster second into the seventh green (16th). Then rolls a 40 foot eagle effort right into the centre of the hole. What an eagle from the people's champ. Daly celebrates by throwing his ball into the drink... DAly back in to two over with two to play.
23.05pm - Ogilvy misses a eight footer for a birdie to stay two under. Poulter also misses a birdie shout and should make par.
10.59pm - Nice shot into the 14th green for Poulter. Birdie chance but only an outside chance as he must be 30 feet from the flag.
10.51pm - No one seems to want to stay on that top leaderboard as Kjeldsen bogeys to drop back to two under.
10.50pm - Monty sinks a great putt for birdie to get back to two over. Good recovery after a bad start for the Scot.
10.46pm Ogilvy on the march now at two under after a birdie on 14.
10.40pm - Poulter sinks putt to move two under. Looking very comfortable around the course. Wonder if he'll keep it going...
10.35pm - Great approach shot by Poulter on the 12th straight at the pin, just stops short. Great chance here for a birdie.
10.30pm Singh drops a shot as the ball stopped over the hole. How unlucky was that. Kjeldsen sinks a beauty to swap places with Vijay on the board.
10.24pm Poulter misses a birdie putt by a whisker to stay on one under.
10.18pm Mickelson chips straight into the bunker from only a couple of feet just missing his target. Chips out and two putts to move to three over
10.15pm - At last a bit of movement at the top of the leaderboard as Vijay moves to three under just past the halfway stage.
10.10pm - John Daly just appeared there in a pair of purple slacks with what looks like a green paisley design going through them. Whatever about the trousers, one of the worst three putts you will see as a birdie chance turned into a bogey as Daly goes three over after 12. Clarke, meanwhile has drifted out to four over with five to play.
10.05pm - Bogey for Mickelson to go one over while Poulter sinks a tasty 15 footer for birdie to move one under after 10.
10.02pm - Mickelson and Azinger side by side in the bunker. Phil hits to 15 feet of the hole while Azinger gets it to a foot to secure par. Tricky par putt for Phil.
9.55pm - Good break for Leftie and handed a decent lie in the trampled rough. Only makes it to the bunker on the right side of the green. Toms is there alongside Mickelson but hits into the rough behind the green, ruling out his birdie chance. Toms threatening to get onto the top of the leaderboard on two under. Great shot out of the rough by Toms and should roll it in for par.
9.51pm - Mickelson drives into the crowd on the ninth so hoping for a good lie or else he'll struggle to make par here.
9.45pm - Speaking of looking sharp, Ian Poulter is tipping away nicely on level par after 10. Cink and Els both struggling on four over at the halfway stage, while Brian Gay and Adam Scott also out of form on six over.
9.40pm - Darren Clarke starting to drift on three over. Needs a bidie or two to be involved over the weekend, I'd imagine. Mickelson is looking sharp but still even par. Missed some chances to get under par.
9.35pm - We're back. A few movers since I left as Vijay, Senden, Kjeldsen and Toms all up to two under. Rain falling now at Hazeltine but conditions still look good for golf with no sign of thunder and lightning.
8.30pm - Right all quiet on the leaderboard with all of the leaders in the clubhouse. So good time to nip out for a bite to eat and see how things stand in 45 mins when I get back to see out the night...
8.15pm - Els just misses birdie chance and stays level after three. Ian Poulter also has a steady start, level as well after three. Meanwhile Mickelson, also level par, lands just off green on third so unkikely to birdie.
8.10pm - Still plenty of big names to go out this evening with Ernie Els about to start his round.
8.08pm Bad day at the office for Michael Campbell and Nick Dougherty both hitting eight over. Darren Clarke drops one on the fifth to sit one over.
8.00pm - None of the late starters making a burst yet but Vijay Singh is one under after two and Lucas Glover birdied the first so maybe two to watch. Sergio Garcia also back in the clubhouse on one under. Steady start for Sergio.
7.56pm - Good start for Darren Clarke making par on his first four holes.
7.51pm - Double bogey for the Open champion Cink. Not a great way to start a tournament. Glover, meanwhile starts with birdie.
7.50pm - Westwood safely home in two under, while Cink has a disaster on the opening hole left with a very tough putt for bogey.
7.47pm - Mickelson just starting out as Woods and Harrington go in to sign their cards. Harrington claims he was strong mentally today until the 16th when maybe he tired a bit. Happy with course but lots of intimidating holes according to the defending champion.
7.40pm - Harrington and Woods par the last hole to make it one-two in the clubhouse with Woods on five under and Harrington a shot back on four under. Good day's work for last week's final pairing. Lee Westwood making good progress as well sitting on two under with one to play.
7.32pm - Goggin joins Mahan and Allenby in clubhouse on three under. Stewart Cink just starting off with Lucas Glover and Angel Cabrera. Clarke level after two.
7.28pm - Harrington finds sand off the final tee. Woods dead straight down the fairway.
7.25pm - Mahan drops one at the 18th to go into the clubhouse on three under. Allenby has the clubhouse lead on three-under, although Goggin has good birdie chance on his final hole to move four under.
7.22pm - Harrington just short with birdie chance but safely pars to stay four under after 17. Woods looking along the same line as Harrington so has a great chance to birdie. Misses by an inch and Tiger has to settle for par.
7.16pm - Great round for McDowell in the clubhouse on two under. Matthew Goggin getting into contention on three-under after 17, while Goydos and Thongchoi also in the clubhouse on two under.
7.15pm - Woods and Harrington on the green at the par-three 8th (17th). Decent birdie chance for Tiger while Harrington will do well to get down in two.
7.10pm - Tiger taps in for birdie to take outright lead on five under.
7.08pm - Tiger leaves eagle putt three feet short. Still should make birdie to move to five under. Harrington has to settle for par to stay four under.
7.06pm - Padraig safely out of the sand but gets dangerously close to the water at the other side of the green. last week's 16th must have run through his mind as that ball rolled downhill. Still a birdie effort for the Dubliner. Woods putting for eagle.
7.02pm - Clarke negotiates the first with a par.
7.00pm - Harrington hits sand with his second.
6.58pm - McIlroy home safe on one under. Great opener from Rory. McDowell coming down the 18th on two under. Great start for the Irish.
6.54pm - Padraig and tiger matching shot for shot as both drive perfectly down the par 5 seventh (16th). Green reachable in two with a tricky water hazzard to the left of the green, Should be an interesting hole all week.
6.50pm - Birdie moves Padraig on to four under to go top with the Tiger.
6.46pm - Woods out on his own now on four under as others bogey and drop back to three under. Now Harrington has a chance to join Tiger on top of the leaderboard.
6.44pm - Harrington lands his second shot just past the hole setting up a decent birdie effort. Woods drops short and has a longer effort to go five under.
6.42pm - Darren Clarke getting ready to start his round. Can he match the three Irish all under par out on the course?
6.32pm - Padraig just misses out on a birdie effort. SHould easily get par. Woods left with a tricky par putt but no problem to the maestro. Harrington makes par as well. Onto the sixth hole (their 15th).
6.22pm - Woods and Harrington safely down the fairway and have time for a quick chat as they march on. Hopefully they're not talking about last Sunday's 16th hole...
6.15pm - Tiger misses short with a long birdie effort on their par three 13th. Tricky 10-footer for par. Harrington dropped over the pin into the back rough to leave a tricky birdie effort from the edge. Short but eases home a par to remain three under. Tiger saves par as well.
6.10pm - McDowell and McIlroy still going along nicely on two and one under respectively as both approach the final three holes of their first round.
6.07pm - Great birdie for Harrington to move three under to stay on Tiger's tail.
6.05pm - Double bogey for Beem as he slips back to level par. Woods nails another monster putt to go joint leader at four under. Next Harrington up for his birdie effort.
6.02pm - Allenby and Quiros birdie to move joint top with Bradley on four under.
5.59pm - Beem having a nightmare having hit four and still not on the green. Tiger pops one onto the back of the green flirting dangerously with the front bunker. Harrington pitches to within 10 feet for another birdie chance.
5.54pm - Harrington looking to reach the 633-yard par five with his second shot. Very ambitious effort doesn't quite reach but only about 30-yards to go for his third. Woods gets another nice kick off the trees to give him a nice approach to the green with his third.
5.52pm - Bradley leading on four under followed by a group of four, Allenby, Woods, Quiros and Hansen on three under.
5.48pm - Harrington & Woods safely on the fairway on their 12th hole.
5.44pm - Tiger sinks a beauty from distance to move three under. Harrington follows with a neat birdie of his own to get back to two under at the first time of asking.
5.40pm - McDowell birdies the 13th to move up to two under. McIlroy still one under after 14.
5.39pm - Woods safely on with a 20-foot putt for birdie. Harrington out of the bunker with about 140 yards to the flag. Tricky shot but Padraig almost nails the pin after a beautiful shot. Great birdie chance for Harrington.
5.34pm - Things getting worse for Harrington as he finds a bunker with his drive at his 11th. Woods perfectly placed in the fairway.
5.33pm - Michael Bradley birdies at the eighth to go four under and take the outright lead.
5.30pm - Bogey for Padraig as the ball just misses right. Back to one under for Harrington.
5.29pm - Tiger nails a very tricky par putt to stick with Beem on two under after 10. Harrington taking his time with his effort - a bit closer that Woods' effort but he's taking his time with the line. Here goes...
5.26pm - Woods and Harrington safely on the green in three but both have tricky par putts of about 10 feet each. Beem going for four birdies in a row but just drifts past the hole. Easy tap in for par for Beem to stay two under.
5.25pm - Quiros drops back into the three under group after a bogey on the ninth.
5.22pm - Harrington hits a hybid second shot into the rough at the back of the green. Tiger gets a lucky break off a tree as his ball was moving way right. Tiger just short of the green in thick rough with a bunker between the rough and the flag. Beem the only one of the three on the green in two.
5.19pm - Villegas drops back from three under to one under after nine.
5.17pm Woods, Harrington and Beem safely down the middle of the fairway on the first hole - their 10th.
5.12pm - Alvaro Quiros now on a roll as he storms out to four under after eight.
5.09pm - No problem as Tiger goes in off the lip from 10 feet. Harrington taps in for par as well so the three-ball head to the first tee on two under after Beem taps in his birdie for three birdies in a row.
5.08pm Tiger left with a tricky putt to save par ahead of his back nine.
5.03pm Rich Beem nails his approach to the 18th, which should see him into the front nine on two-under.
5pm McIlroy and McDowell both remain on one-under after ten holes.
4.54pm Harrington came up short of the green from the tee at the 186 yard 17th, and had to settle for par. Woods matched that after again missing birdie by no more than three inches, while Beem moved to one-under with a superb birdie two.
4.40pm Harrington recovered superbly after almost driving into hazards off the 16th tee. He then drove to within four feet of the pin at the back of the green and kept his nerve for birdie to move to two-under. Woods, meanwhile, came up short from his second shot and left himself within an inch of birdie before having to settle for par. Beem, a winner here seven years ago, matched his crucial birdie at 16 on the final day in 2002 by claiming another fine birdie today.
4.25pm Harrington misses the opportunity to birdie the 16th, but he pulls his putt from the edge of the green five inches left of the hole. He has to settle for par.
4.15pm Mallinger is joined by Allenby on three-under, while McIlroy made par to stay within one shot of the lead.
4pm McIlroy is knocked from the top after registering his first bogey at the par four 402 yard 16th. That saw him overtaken by the USA's John Mallinger, who moved to three-under after birdies at 6, 7 and 8. McDowell has also moved to one-under after six, alongside Harrington and Woods, who have four holes played.
3.45pm Big-hitter McIlroy met the challenge of the weekend's longest hole head-on, making his third birdie at the 642 yard par five 15th to maintain his one-shot lead over three players on two-under. Harrington and Woods are both chasing well on one-under after three, while McDowell is still level through five.
3.25pm McIlroy has surged one shot clear with a birdie three at the 352 yard 14th. The Holywood man is looking good yet again. Can he keep it up?
3.15pm The solid Irish start has continued with all players yet to drop a shot. Harrington has matched Woods on the opening two holes to remain at level par, while McIlroy is still in a share of the lead on one-under after four. American DJ Trahan and South Korean Charlie Wi are at one-under through seven holes. McDowell is still level with three played.
3.00pm Defending champion Padraig Harrington and Tiger Woods have begun their first rounds, both making par on the 10th. Rich Beem, the third player in the group, hits a bogey five.
2.50pm News is just coming through that England's Paul Casey has had to pull out of the event with a rib injury. Read more on that here.
2.49pm Conditions are near perfect for golf, with a temperature of 22°C and good sunny spells. However, there is a chance of rain in the afternoon.
2.46pm Graeme McDowell, playing alongside Robert Allenby and Dustin Johnson, also gets off to a solid start with two pars at the par four first and second holes.
2.30pm McIlroy, in a three-ball with Jim Furyk and Martin Kaymer, makes par on the 11th, a par five 606 yard hole, the third longest hole.
2.15pm Ok folks, welcome to RTÉ Sport's live text commentary, where we'll be following all the action from Hazeltine. Rory McIlroy has got off to a great start, hitting a birdie at the par four 10th.
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Keep up-to-date with our live text commentary after play starts at 1.15pm Irish time.
Ireland's Padraig Harrington, who is the defending champion, is back in the world's top 10 and was runner-up to Tiger Woods at the World Golf Championships Bridgestone Invitational Event last weekend.
Harrington is aiming to win his fourth major at Hazeltine.
Other Irish interest comes in the form of Graeme McDowell, Rory McIlroy, and Darren Clarke.
