Love shares first-day lead
Web posted 04/09/99
The Sea Island, Ga., resident, happily lost in the David Duval vs. Tiger Woods pre-tournament buildup this week, blistered the back nine at the Augusta National Golf Club Thursday to claim a share of the lead in the darkness-delayed first round of the 63rd Masters Tournament.
Love, who is bidding to join Tommy Aaron and Larry Mize as the only Georgia residents to win the Masters, ripped off four birdies on the inward nine for a 4-under-par 32. That brought him home in 69, thanks to a 276-yard driving average and just 25 putts.
Love, 34, shares the first-round lead with 33-year-old Scott McCarron and 36-year-old Brandel Chamblee, a Masters rookie.
Nick Price, one of 12 players who did not complete the first round because of a one-hour, 33-minute lightning delay in the late afternoon, has a chance to be the solo leader after the first round.
Price is 3-under-par for the day and will pick up his round with his tee shot on the 18th hole.
Golfers shooting 70s were 1994 Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal, Colin Montgomerie, Justin Leonard, Andrew Magee, Jeff Sluman, Lee Janzen and defending champion Mark O'Meara, who rolled in a 6-footer for birdie on the 18th hole as darkness came.
The new rough, or ``second cut'' as Augusta National officials like to call it, caused problems all day, especially after the delay. Wet grass and increased wind following the delay made play more difficult.
``I'm the quietest No. 3 (his ranking in the world, behind Duval and Woods) there's ever been,'' Love said.
``It was nice not to be in demand (during the practice rounds),'' Love said, noting he was able to concentrate on the task at hand and spend time with his family. ``It would be nice to be in demand on Monday (as the Masters champion).''
Love's 69 matched the opening round score he shot in the 1995 Masters, where he went on to finish second to Ben Crenshaw by one shot. Love shot 13-under-par 275 that year, a score that would win all but seven of the 62 Masters that have been played.
``You know, that was a good score, a very good score,'' Love said. ``I'd like to just shoot that score again a couple more times.''
The 69 on Thursday also matched the score Love's late father, Davis Love Jr., shot to share the first-round lead in the 1964 Masters. Love Jr., would go on to finish tied for 34th in that tournament. On the day following the event, Davis III was born.
Price and the other 11 players who didn't finish their rounds will return to the course at 9 this morning. Second-round play for the rest of the field will start at 8:15 a.m. as planned. This is the first time the Masters Tournament didn't re-pair the field after the first round based on their scores, which looks like a stroke of genius now.
This is the second straight year the field did not complete the first round on Thursday. In 1998, 10 golfers did not finish their rounds before darkness set in. Later starting times because of rain on the eve of the tournament pushed back the starting times by an hour.
The National Weather Service predicts a 20 percent chance of showers for today and Saturday. Southwesterly winds at 15 to 25 mph and party cloudy skies are predicted for today.
Price bogeyed his first hole on Thursday then rebounded with a birdie on No. 2 and never lost his momentum.
``This is a really important tournament for me,'' Price said in the locker room after darkness halted play at 7:42 p.m. ``It's important to anybody.''
Price, who at age 42 is the oldest player among the leaders by six years, already has two legs of the four-tournament, career grand slam. He won the 1994 British Open and the 1994 PGA Championship.
``I'm trying to get some good years in before my time is up,'' Price said.
Of the leaders, Price and Love are the only major championship winners. Love's major win came in the 1997 PGA Championship. His best finish in the four majors in 1998 was a tie for seventh at the PGA Championship.
``I'm always eager to get started in the majors, but especially this one,'' Love said. ``I'm looking forward to trying to get a little bit better every day, a little more relaxed.''
Love finished his round well before the rain and lightning hit the course, causing play to be suspended at 5:02 p.m.
Not so fortunate was Duval. At the time of the suspension, he had already hit his fourth shot to the par-5 13th hole after hitting his drive in the tributary of Rae's Creek. After the delay, he missed the short par putt and had to take his second straight bogey. Duval did birdie his last hole before darkness hit, the 17th, to get back to one under for the day.
``On a course like this, you're going to run into some bad stuff,'' Duval said. ``You try to outweigh it with the good stuff.''
``He's still in good shape,'' said Price, one of Duval's playing partners. ``He's weathered the little storm he went through.''
If the lead holds up, Chamblee would be the first Masters rookie to own a share of the first-round lead since Tom Lehman in 1993. Lehman went on to finish tied for third that year.
Chamblee was surprised to find the course playing much like it did during the practice rounds. Some years, the course changes dramatically between the beginning of the Monday practice rounds and Thursday's first round.
``I'd heard horror stories about that,'' Chamblee said. ``Pretty much everybody I talked to this week said, `Don't get used to this' whenever you hit a shot and it stopped on the green. I thought the course played pretty much how I expected it to play.''
The highlight of Chamblee's round came on the par-5 13th hole, where he made eagle. He hit a club called a Zoom, which is comparable to a 4- or 5-wood, 216 yards, to within 4 feet of the pin.
The Zoom, manufactured by PRGR, ``doesn't look like an iron or a wood,'' Chamblee said. ``It's ugly the first time you see it, but when you hit it, it gets much prettier. It's really kind of an in-between club. It's a club for here. I've had a lot of fun with it the last year.''
McCarron, who like Love is one of the longest hitters on the PGA Tour, is the first golfer to share the Masters lead while using a long-shafted putter. This is his fourth Masters appearance. His best finish is a tie for 10th in his debut.
``For some reasons I get here and start relaxing and feel comfortable,'' McCarron said. ``I drive the ball farther and feel more powerful. It's kind of a mystical place for me. I've really enjoyed it from the first time I stepped up and played Augusta.''
The changes to the course -- four holes were altered and 45 yards added -- were just one of three reasons why the Augusta National played so tough. The course also had a few so-called ``Sunday pin placements'' make their appearance three days early, and the greens were inconsistent.
``They (the greens) were kind of soft on the front nine and kind of like rocks on the back,'' said 1982 Masters champ Craig Stadler, who shot 72. ``It was pretty much two different golf courses. On the front nine, you could hit it to 6 to 8 feet and on the back nine it would stop rolling 30 feet later.''
As for the tough pin placements, 1992 Masters champion Fred Couples tried to look on the bright side after shooting 74.
``They'll be easier some other days and then you can score,'' Couples said.
``It used to be if you shot a 72 you were discouraged,'' said John Daly, who did shoot 72. ``But the way the course is playing...it's just not that easy.''
One longevity record was broken in the first round and another extended on Thursday. Arnold Palmer played his record 45th straight Masters, passing Sam Snead. The four-time Masters champion shot an 83.
Doug Ford, the 1957 Masters champion, played in his record 47th Masters, breaking the record he set two years ago. Ford has played in every Masters since 1952 with the exception of the 1955 tournament.
Ford, age 76, shot an 88 Thursday and said afterward, ``I don't know if I'll play tomorrow or not.''
