Get a grip! Sergio switch

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pays off with lowest round

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since February

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE

Sergio Garcia switched to a weaker grip and produced his lowest round since February as he moved onto the leaderboard at the end of the first day of the US PGA Tour's Verizon Heritage tournament in South Carolina.
The Spaniard, who tied for 45th at last week's Masters and is without a victory since the 2008 Players Championship 23 months ago, played with a new grip at Harbour Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island and shot a four-under-par first-round 67, matching his best round since the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in mid-February.
That put Garcia, pictured above, in a tie for fourth place, three shots behind leader K J Choi of Korea, who maintained his sparkling Masters form with an early 64.
The high point of Garcia's season to date has been the fourth place he secured at the World Golf Championship-Accenture Match Play two months ago in Arizona and the European Ryder Cup star admitted he has not happy with his game.
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"We're working on it but it's taking time," he said. "Whenever I figure it out, I'll let you know."
Choi, meanwhile, could not be happier with his game. Having tied for fourth place with Tiger Woods at Augusta National last Sunday, five strokes behind champion Phil Mickelson, his purple patch continued further east at Harbour Town.
Choi shot a seven-under-par 64 that included eight birdies and one bogey to take a two-shot lead over England's Greg Owen and Canada's Mike Weir.
Owen carded eight birdies and two bogeys while Weir had an eagle at the par-four first, the 10th hole of his round. The 2003 Masters champion holed out from 144 yards on his way to an opening 66.
Garcia shared fourth place with a dozen other players, including five-time tournament winner Davis Love III and another American, Jerry Kelly, who recorded a hole in one at the 193-yard par-three fourth hole having also managed the feat in 2007 when the hole was playing eight yards longer.
Also on four under was world number six Jim Furyk, a week after shooting an 80 at Augusta on his way to missing the Masters cut. Furyk's round could have been better but for a bogey at the par-four 18th.

SCOREBOARD

FIRST ROUND
Par 71
64 K J Choi (Kor)
66 Mike Weir (Can), Greg Owen (Eng)
67 Jerry Kelly, Jason Dufner, Sergio Garcia (Spa), Davis Love III, Woody Austin, James Driscoll, Shaun Micheel, Jim Furyk, Bill Haas, Chad Collins, Bo Van Pelt, Glen Day, Tim Clark (Rsa)
68 Michael Letzig, Bryce Molder, Brian Davis (Eng), Matt Bettencourt, Charles Howell III, Will MacKenzie, Aaron Baddeley (Aus), J J Henry, Trevor Immelman (Rsa), Boo Weekley, Rickie Fowler
69 Scott McCarron, Michael Bradley, Byeong-hun An (Kor), Lucas Glover, J.P. Hayes, Greg Kraft, Ben Curtis, Nick O'Hern (Aus), James Nitties (Aus), Matthew Jones (Aus), Ricky Barnes, Chad Campbell, Brett Quigley, Roland Thatcher, Martin Laird (Sco), Luke Donald (Eng), Carl Pettersson (Swe), Stuart Appleby (Aus)
70 Heath Slocum, John Mallinger, Webb Simpson, Robert Karlsson (Swe), Chris Tidland, Tim Petrovic, Marc Leishman (Aus), Kris Blanks, Mark Anderson, Steve Flesch, Joe Ogilvie, Chris DiMarco, Greg Chalmers (Aus), Jason Day (Aus), Kevin Na, Charlie Wi (Kor), Jeff Maggert, Camilo Villegas (Col)
71 Zach Johnson, Jeff Quinney, Ted Purdy, Lee Janzen, Scott Piercy, Matt Kuchar, Stewart Cink, Tim Wilkinson (Nzl), Daniel Chopra (Swe), George McNeill, Rocco Mediate, Briny Baird, D.J. Trahan
72 Spencer Levin, Brian Gay, Chris Couch, Steve Wheatcroft, Alex Prugh, John Daly, Bob Estes, Henrik Bjornstad (Nor), Brendon De Jonge, Rodney Pampling (Aus), Mark Brooks, Michael Connell, Alex Cejka (Ger), Richard S Johnson (Swe), Michael Allen, Tom Gillis, Johnson Wagner, Troy Merritt
73 Omar Uresti, Kevin Johnson, Harrison Frazar, J.B. Holmes, Robert Allenby (Aus), Cameron Beckman, Jonathan Byrd, Brandt Snedeker, Josh Teater
74 Brian Stuard, Charles Warren, Rory Sabbatini (Rsa), Steve Lowery, Graham Delaet (Can), Chez Reavie, Steve Elkington (Aus), Brad Faxon, Fredrik Jacobson (Swe), Mark Calcavecchia, Matthew Every, Jimmy Walker, Scott Verplank, Stephen Ames (Can)
75 Bud Cauley, Brent Delahoussaye, Nathan Green (Aus), Bill Lunde, Paul Casey (Eng), Parker McLachlin, Troy Matteson
76 Jeff Klauk, Scott Medlin, Mathew Goggin (Aus)
77 Vaughn Taylor, Ryuji Imada (Jpn), Jason Bohn, Blake Adams, Nicholas Thompson