SANG-MOON BAE LEADS WITH SEVEN-UNDER 63 IN SONY OPEN ON HAWAII
Sang-Moon Bae, leader in Sony Open. Picture by courtesy of Getty Images(c)
HONOLULU -- South Korean Sang-Moon
Bae got off to a great start in pristine conditions along the shores of Oahu. American Chris Kirk had an ideal finish.
They were together all Thursday morning, playing in the
same group at the Sony Open in Hawaii
and taking the top two spots on the leaderboard.
Bae played bogey-free for a seven-under 63. Kirk shot 29 on the back nine at Waialae, including an eagle on the
last hole, for a 64.
They were among the early starters in the first full-field event of 2014 on the US PGA Tour, and they took advantage of a gorgeous day.
Their better-ball score was 56.
"He was off to a great start," Kirk said. "At one point he was 4 under and I was still 2 over. It took some catching up for me on the back nine. But it's always nice to see putts falling."
Brian Stuard and Ryan Palmer were in with 65s.
Retief Goosen, finally feeling better after missing another big chunk of the year with back problems, slept awkwardly on his neck and was sore during the pro-am. That apparently healed quickly. He was in the group at 66 that included Harris English, Jimmy Walker and John Daly.
Daly and Hideto Tanihara of Japan were the only players at 66 or better from the morning group who were not at Kapalua last week for the Sony Open, also played on the Hawaii islands.
There are not two courses only 100 miles apart in the same state on any other consecutive weeks on the US PGA Tour.
Kapalua was built on the side of a mountain, with severe grain in the greens and massive changes in elevation. Waialae is flat, tight and tree-lined with small greens. "I think I played well last week, but really tough greens," Bae said. "Very hard to read. I couldn't read any right-to-left putts -- any putts -- so I missed a lot of puts last week. But this course is more shorter than last week, so easy read, and I can make good speed, too."
Bae opened with a 7-iron to 3 feet on the opening hole, made a 25-footer for birdie on No. 3 and didn't miss a green until the 13th hole. He hit wedge to 15 feet to save par, and picked up his seventh and final birdie on the next hole.
Kirk had reason to believe this wasn't going to be his day when his ball got stuck in a tree on the sixth hole and he had to scramble for bogey, already 2 over.
But a shot into tap-in range on the eighth hole sent him on his way, and an eagle brought him within one shot of Bae.
Masters champion Adam Scott, with pro surfer Benji Weatherley filling in as his caddie, birdied his last two holes for a 67. It's not a bad start, but in these conditions, Scott realizes it needs to be better.
Daly can only hope this isn't just a false start. He had surgery on his elbow last summer, and hopes that his injuries are behind him. He made five birdies for a 66.
Bae, who won his first US PGA Tour event last year at the Byron Nelson Championship, is coming up on three straight weeks in Hawaii. It was too cold in South Korea to practise, so he came to the islands on December 20 to practise and relax on the beach for two weeks before the Hyundai Tournament of Champions.
He played Waialae about three or four times, and feels like he knows the course better.
"I practised a little bit and I had fun," he said. "Go to beach, go swim, everything. I like it here."
Inverness-born Russell is in joint 25th place with a two-under 68.
LEADING FIRST-ROUND SCORES
Par 70
Players from USA unless stated otherwise
63 Sang-Moon Bae (South Korea)
64 Chris Kirk
65 Brian Stuart, Ryan Palmer
66 Retief Goosen (South Africa), Harris English, Jimmy Walker, John Daly, Hideto Tanihara (Japan), Jason Kokrak, Daniel Summerhayes
SELECTED SCORES
67 Adam Scott (Australia), Jason Duffner (T12)
68 Russell Knox (Scotland) (T25)
TO VIEW ALL THE SCORES
CLICK HERE
Their better-ball score was 56.
"He was off to a great start," Kirk said. "At one point he was 4 under and I was still 2 over. It took some catching up for me on the back nine. But it's always nice to see putts falling."
Brian Stuard and Ryan Palmer were in with 65s.
Retief Goosen, finally feeling better after missing another big chunk of the year with back problems, slept awkwardly on his neck and was sore during the pro-am. That apparently healed quickly. He was in the group at 66 that included Harris English, Jimmy Walker and John Daly.
Daly and Hideto Tanihara of Japan were the only players at 66 or better from the morning group who were not at Kapalua last week for the Sony Open, also played on the Hawaii islands.
There are not two courses only 100 miles apart in the same state on any other consecutive weeks on the US PGA Tour.
Kapalua was built on the side of a mountain, with severe grain in the greens and massive changes in elevation. Waialae is flat, tight and tree-lined with small greens. "I think I played well last week, but really tough greens," Bae said. "Very hard to read. I couldn't read any right-to-left putts -- any putts -- so I missed a lot of puts last week. But this course is more shorter than last week, so easy read, and I can make good speed, too."
Bae opened with a 7-iron to 3 feet on the opening hole, made a 25-footer for birdie on No. 3 and didn't miss a green until the 13th hole. He hit wedge to 15 feet to save par, and picked up his seventh and final birdie on the next hole.
Kirk had reason to believe this wasn't going to be his day when his ball got stuck in a tree on the sixth hole and he had to scramble for bogey, already 2 over.
But a shot into tap-in range on the eighth hole sent him on his way, and an eagle brought him within one shot of Bae.
Masters champion Adam Scott, with pro surfer Benji Weatherley filling in as his caddie, birdied his last two holes for a 67. It's not a bad start, but in these conditions, Scott realizes it needs to be better.
Daly can only hope this isn't just a false start. He had surgery on his elbow last summer, and hopes that his injuries are behind him. He made five birdies for a 66.
Bae, who won his first US PGA Tour event last year at the Byron Nelson Championship, is coming up on three straight weeks in Hawaii. It was too cold in South Korea to practise, so he came to the islands on December 20 to practise and relax on the beach for two weeks before the Hyundai Tournament of Champions.
He played Waialae about three or four times, and feels like he knows the course better.
"I practised a little bit and I had fun," he said. "Go to beach, go swim, everything. I like it here."
Inverness-born Russell is in joint 25th place with a two-under 68.
LEADING FIRST-ROUND SCORES
Par 70
Players from USA unless stated otherwise
63 Sang-Moon Bae (South Korea)
64 Chris Kirk
65 Brian Stuart, Ryan Palmer
66 Retief Goosen (South Africa), Harris English, Jimmy Walker, John Daly, Hideto Tanihara (Japan), Jason Kokrak, Daniel Summerhayes
SELECTED SCORES
67 Adam Scott (Australia), Jason Duffner (T12)
68 Russell Knox (Scotland) (T25)
TO VIEW ALL THE SCORES
CLICK HERE
Labels: US PGA TOUR
posted by Colin |
See story on its own page | Friday, January 10, 2014
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