Day One Highlights of the Chevron World Challenge
Tiger Woods surged into the lead on the first day of the Chevron World Challenge at the Sherwood Country Club, Thousand Oaks, California.
The former world number one smashed a score of 7-under-65 in the opening round against seventeen contenders. He was one stroke ahead of Graeme Mc Dowell and Rory Mc Ilroy.
Woods teed off with his Ryder Cup partner, Steve Striker at 11.10 am and reeled eight birdies to surprise the field, which was in a state of shock. Tiger has been struggling with his putter and the driver since 2009 and after a
gap of 12 months, he roared once again.
Four strokes behind were Stewart Cink and the king of bunkers, Dustin Johnson. Both the Americans played alongside in the Ryder Cup, but were out of competitive golf ever since. Despite the gap, the duo started considerably well
and gave quality time to the spectators.
Despite being a competitor of Woods, Cink was pleased with his compatriot's return. Cink told the press, "It'll be interesting to see what he does. I am a golf fan as much as I am a player. I love watching guys and learning from
them. He will be fine, I think. I do not know if he will get back to a point where he is winning 10 tournaments a year. He may not. That is freakish good. He still may become incredibly good."
With a score of 2-under-par, Luke Donald and Camilo Villegas stood on the sixth spot of the leader board. Donald seemed confused on the course. A course which shouldn't have been a problem for the European due to his frequent visits
to this side of the Atlantic. However, this was only the start and three more rounds could change the entire scenario, not once but thrice.
The most interesting group resided on par. The group was comprised of Tiger’s number one rival, Ian Poulter. The Englishman bid that he would win the tournament, which was being hosted by Tiger Woods. However, despite the early
bid, a victory in Hong Kong, and loads of determination, Poulter could not give a blasting start.
He shared the spot with Hunter Mahan, Nick Watney, Steve Striker, Sean O'Hair, and Jim Furyk. The initial results were not surprising as a similar start was predicted from them. Mahan was having trouble with his confidence ever
since the last shot of the singles in the Ryder Cup. The 28-year-old failed to grab a point against Graeme Mc Dowell on the last hole and lost the title. However, the Californian is back and very soon, he will be back with his killer charms.
Meanwhile, Stricker, who supported Woods in the foursomes and four balls seems to be out of form. The American tried his luck on the putter, but missed a couple of shots, which resulted in a par.
A stroke behind was Paul Casey as his bogey count was more than the number of birdies, which he caught. Like Woods, the Englishman has been winless throughout 2010. However, he performed considerably well in HSBC Champions and
seized a share in the sixth spot in Dubai. How will he tackle the Sherwood CC is a question that will be answered by the end of the fourth round.
Matt Kuchar and Zach Johnson helped a round of 75 and could not do much on the first day. Further below were Bubba Watson (76) and Anthony Kim (79). Watson has been out of form, owing to his absence from golf for a month. The rookie
lost his father because of cancer after the Ryder Cup and was not ready for the game that required utmost attention and morale.
Thats it for the results of the first round of the Chevron World Challenge, which has $5 million on offer. Tiger Woods took the lead after scoring 65 with his revived swings, whereas, Graeme and Ian stood behind on lower spots
rethinking their strategies.
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