Charl Schwartzel leads the pack after the opening round of the WGC-CA at Doral's TPC Blue Monster, on a day when strong winds and a demanding course thwarted some of golf's biggest names.
Schwarztel hit five birdies - three on the opening four holes - for a flawless opener that was enough to see the South African take a one-stroke lead.
"You know, I played a lot of good rounds in my career, and yeah, this one rates right up there," said the 25-year-old. "It could even be at the top. It was difficult. You couldn't mess a shot."
Tied for second place were veterans Vijay Singh and Ernie Els, Singh shooting seven birdies after an early bogey on the third, but ending the day on a low with a double bogey on the 18th. Els' round was a similar story, the big South African carding six birdies but also two bogeys, one of those again coming on the 18th.
Disappointing endings seemed to be the story of the day, with Robert Allenby also tying for second, though he deserved better after a phenomenal start. The Australian struck six birdies and an eagle in the first 12 holes, but sadly, Allenby's game nosedived towards the end, the 38-year-old hitting four bogeys on as many holes between the 15th and 18th.
England's Paul Casey was one of six players tied for fifth place on three-under, Casey carding a sweet six birdies - but undoing some of that good work with a trio of bogeys on the 9th, 13th and 14th. Italy's Francesco Molinari and Denmark's Soren Hansen were on the same score, while Germany's Martin Kaymer, Ireland's Padraig Harrington and England's Luke Donald were amongst those a shot back on two-under, tied for 11th place.
Phil Mickelson continued an underwhelming start to the season, finishing the first round one-under after carding two bogeys on the 17th and 18th. England's brash but likable Ian Poulter finished on par, with four birdies nullified by four bogeys, three of which came on the back nine. World No. 2 Steve Stricker could only finish one-over, after notching up three bogeys and a double bogey on the 4th, though Stricker bucked one trend, managing to find a birdie on the difficult 18th.
After promising so much early on, Lee Westwood came home two-over, having hit an eagle on the opening hole and following that up with a birdie on the 2nd. But then the 36-year-old carded six bogeys, four of which came on the last four holes. At least the Englishman still has time to make amends for that frustrating finish - the WGC CA doesn't feature a midway cut, meaning Westwood still has time to get back into this competition.
Perhaps that knowledge can also bring some faint solace to Rory McIlroy, who endured a dismal opening round, shooting two birdies and six bogeys to find himself seventh from bottom of the leaderboard, four-over-par, 76 after finding the Blue Monster's bunkers with wearying frequency.
The Ulsterman made headlines earlier this week when it was revealed he will grace the cover of the new Tiger Woods videogame, along with Woods - but if McIlroy continues to put in performances like this, the only victory the 20-year-old is likely to experience any time soon will come via Xbox.
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