``I like it better when you guys talk to me more,'' Norman told reporters behind the 18th green as he finished his rain-delayed 71 at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.

Norman had shoulder surgery after the 1998 Masters and has fallen far from No. 1 in the World Golf Ranking, a position he had held for more than 300 weeks since the ranking began in 1986. He was picking up his playing schedule until being sidelined by a virus last week. That sickness caused him to miss last week's BellSouth Classic and some pre-Masters preparation.

Norman was even-par Thursday when a thunderstorm hit at 5:05 p.m. At 6:35 p.m., he came back out for his tee shot on the par-3 16th and hit a 6-iron tight for a birdie to reach 1-under. After an up and down from behind the 17th green, Norman missed a 4-foot birdie try on 18.

``It was a good day of work,'' Norman said. ``A good, solid round.

``Anytime you have a good start here it's a good feeling. Sometimes you shoot 74, 75 in the first round and you feel you're way out of it. Around par is a good feeling for the first day.''

HAPPY MONTY: Colin Montgomerie finally feels at home at Augusta National.

The Scot fired a 2-under-par 70 Thursday in the first round of the Masters Tournament. There were no cat-calls from the gallery, as the outspoken golfer has received on many occasions at American tournaments. The pairing with Steve Jones and Ray Floyd was very suitable.

Jones' caddie, Scott Jones, and Monty's caddie, Alastair McLean, are roommates in Augusta this week. Montgomerie said he also has a good relationship with their third playing partner, 1976 Masters winner Floyd.

``You know, the draw can affect you in certain ways, and today it certainly helped,'' Montgomerie said.

The presence of rough also lifted Montgomerie's spirits. He hit 11 of 14 fairways and 15 greens in regulation.

``I feel more comfortable on this golf course now that they've grown what we call rough,'' Montgomerie said. ``It's not really rough but it makes a big, big difference in the second-shot approach to the greens.''

POOR FALDO: Nick Faldo's game continues to fall apart.

The three-time Masters champion shot an 80 Thursday in the first round of the Masters. Since rallying to beat Norman in the 1996 Masters, Faldo has shot rounds of 75-81-72-79-80 and missed two cuts here.

``I hit two bad drives, and I hit three other iron shots off line,'' Faldo said. ``I couldn't get up and down when I needed to.''

Faldo hit only six greens in regulation in his round and scored double bogeys on the par-5 second and par-3 12th holes.

``It's the same old story,'' Faldo said. ``It's close but not close enough.''

On the PGA Tour this year, Faldo lost in the first round of the Anderson Match Play, missed the cut at Doral and Honda, and was disqualified in the final round of The Players Championship for dropping the ball in an incorrect spot. His worst round of the year was an 83 in the third round of the Players.

PAR-3 JINX: The Par-3 jinx is alive and well.

Par-3 champion and first-year Masters competitor Joe Durant shot a first-round, 15-over-par 87 and is in next-to-last place after the first day.

``It was a nightmare (Thursday),'' said Durant, who hit balls into the water on Nos. 11, 13, 15 and 16. ``It was like a comedy of errors after awhile.''

No Par-3 winner has ever won the Masters in the same year, and Durant concedes that the jinx has continued.

``It doesn't look like it'll happen this year either,'' he said. ``I'll continue the tradition. There must be something in that jinx.''

DIFFERENT TOUR: LPGA golfer Helen Alfredsson is at the Masters for the sixth straight year in a working capacity. Alfredsson takes the week off from playing since the LPGA doesn't have an event this week. This is her fourth year working with Swedish TV. In the previous years, she worked with CBS on No. 15 and with British Broadcasting Company radio.

``The fans and the atmosphere here is so much different than anywhere else golfers play,'' Alfredsson said. ``It's just such a great thrill to be here.''

Alfredsson said she has played the course once, shooting a 78.

``After I got past the intimidation factor about four holes in I was OK,'' said Alfredsson, who turns 34 today. ``I accomplished my goals -- I parred No. 12 and birdied No. 15.''

PARTNERSHIP: PGATour.com and GolfWeb.com have merged to produce possibly the largest golf site on the Internet, the two Web sites announced this week.

The new site will continue to have real-time scoring from the PGA Tour, Senior Tour and Nike Tour. The PGA Tour will have editorial control.

The new site, at PGATour.com, will debut July 1.

YELLOW JACKET: Georgia Tech basketball coach Bobby Cremins attended Thursday's opening round of the Masters. A dead period in the recruiting season allowed the Yellow Jackets coach to visit the Augusta National Golf Club.

Cremins said he was cheering on Tech products Stewart Cink, David Duval and Matt Kuchar.

``Duval is unbelievable,'' Cremins said. ``Today is just a day away from work.''

THE KNIFE: Mark Calcavecchia is playing with a cut left forefinger, an injury sustained Tuesday night when he was making a sandwich at his rental home and cut himself with a butter knife. The 1988 runnerup shot a 75 Thursday.

HURTING: Floyd, the 1976 Masters champion, shot a 2-over-par 74 Thursday but was ailing.

``My back is sore,'' Floyd said. ``It's not like shooting pain. Obviously, it's muscular.''

BAD FINISH: Ernie Els, one of the tournament favorites, was cruising along at 3-under par until he reached the par-4 18th hole. The South African drove in the fairway bunker, hit a 7-iron out to a green-side bunker, blasted out to 35 feet and three-putted for double bogey to finish with a 71.

``When you get to 3-under, you try to finish 3-under or better,'' Els said. ``I played well. It's unfortunate about 18.''

NOT BAD: John Daly on his first-round 72: ``It used to be if you shot 72 you were discouraged here. But the way the course is playing -- it's not that easy.''

PLAYING PUTT-PUTT: Fred Couples, the 1992 champion, on his first-round 74: ``Most of the greens were not as fast. I left everything short. I hate to use the word slow around here. I didn't putt yesterday because I thought they would shave them. ... I putted like a 12-handicapper.''

Couples took 32 putts and hit 13 greens in regulation.

BIRTHDAY: Two-time champion Seve Ballesteros turns 42 today. He shot 78 Thursday.