Five players share the lead following the first round of the $3.4 million National Car Rental Golf Classic PGA Tour event in Florida. Battling blustery conditions, Stewart Cink, Scott McCarron, Steve Lowery, Len Mattiace and Shaun Micheel all shot seven--under 65s to lead the pack as David Toms, Vijay Singh of Fiji and Canadian Mike Weir were among seven players to card 66s.
Fourteen others are within two shots of the leaders, but Tiger Woods is not among them after ending his five-week hiatus with a three-under-par 69 that left him in a tie for 31st, four shots back. Cink, McCarron and Lowery are all perfectly poised to hold on to one of the final thirty spots for the season-ending Tour Championship in two weeks time.
While he is a member of the United States Ryder Cup team, Cink is just 28th on the money list with $1,584,696. McCarron is 26th, one spot behind Lowery, while Mattiace is just 83rd with $573,852. He needs the $612,000 top prize just to move into the top 45.
Tiger Woods leads the money list but struggled during his first event since last month's Canadian Open, finishing his front nine with a double-bogey and his back with a bogey. Woods drove into a lateral hazard at the 455-yard 18th, his ninth hole, at the Palm course and ended up missing a six-foot bogey putt. That followed a string of three birdies in seven holes.
Carl Paulson became the 35th player this year to have two eagles in one round and played the par-fives at the Palm Course in six-under en route to a 66.
Filed by Shane Murray
