Golf Capsules: Kuchar atop the leaderboard again; Woods struggles
LEMONT, Ill. (AP) — At this point in a strange season, slow starts should be nothing new to Tiger Woods. This one came at a bad time.
The BMW Championship is the most pivotal playoff event, with the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings advancing to the Tour Championship in Atlanta to compete for the $10 million bonus. Woods is No. 51 in the standings and probably needs to finish around fifth.
He sure dug himself quite a hole.
Matt Kuchar had his best start of the year with a 7-under 64. Woods had his worst start at Cog Hill in five years.
He opened with a double bogey. He missed a 3-foot birdie putt at the turn. He squandered a birdie chance on another par 5 by hitting an iron into the trees. And he finished with a bogey from the bunker on the 18th hole, a sand shot so tough he was trying to make sure it didn't go across the green and into the water.
"I just didn't have much today," Woods said.
It wasn't much of a score — not considering it was Cog Hill, a course where Woods has won five times and had 11 consecutive rounds in the 60s until Thursday. Woods wound up with a 2-over 73 and was nine shots behind in a tie for 45th.
Stranger still was the way he looked at his position.
Woods looked at the leaderboard long enough while signing his card that he realized the immediate goal might not be who's leading the tournament, but where he needs to finish to get enough FedEx Cup points to go to the Tour Championship.
"As of right now, I'm only five shots back of that spot," he said. "That's not bad. Guys aren't going low at this place because the greens aren't good enough to go low. Obviously, there's a couple of players that have played well today. But overall, guys just aren't tearing the place apart."
Phil Mickelson wouldn't mind doing that. Unfortunately for him, Rees Jones beat him to it.
Lefty has never been a fan of Cog Hill since Jones revamped the place, just like he didn't care for the work Jones did at Torrey Pines, where Mickelson is a three-time winner before the changes.
He skipped the tournament in 2007. He thought about skipping this year, and arranged to swap out his pro-am round with a corporate function. Mickelson spent Wednesday at Butler National and raved about it.
Mickelson had a pair of birdies through four holes, but it all came undone on the back nine, and he finished with a bogey on the par-5 ninth that put him at 72. He was asked if it was harder to play a course for which he has little affection.
"Yes," he replied.
This isn't the same course where Kuchar won the 1997 U.S. Amateur, although the sweet memories remain. Kuchar is No. 1 in the FedEx Cup standings, already assured of going to East Lake with as good a chance as anyone to win the big bonus.
He got his round going with a laser shot to 10 feet for eagle on the 15th, and he finished strong with an 18-foot birdie. Already a winner in the playoffs, at The Barclays two weeks ago, there's really not much else for him to say.
Besides, he couldn't.
Kuchar has laryngitis and begged off media interviews to keep it from getting worse. But he doesn't need a voice to smile, and there was plenty of reason for that on a relatively calm morning in the Chicago suburbs.
It was the second-best start of his career, and the 21st time in 23 events this year that he broke par in the opening round.
"Just keep playing," Kuchar said to one question he felt good enough to answer. "I was driving it well. I was actually doing everything well. It felt very good. Last week was a little bit suspect, and this week I kind of figured some stuff out."
He was one shot ahead of Ryan Moore, who figured out how to make birdies when he least expected it.
Dressed in a black sweater and white golf shirt, with a tie hung loosely around his neck, Moore was 1 over for the round and in a bunker on the 11th. He holed that out for birdie, hit 3-iron to 5 feet for birdie, and after a par, finished with five straight birdies.
"I certainly wasn't expecting to do that," Moore said. "I hit a horrible tee shot on 11 with an even worse lay-up, and then I hit a terrible shot from there into a bunker and then holed out. I don't know. Just got a little positive momentum going from there."
Ian Poulter was in third place at 66, and he had to find momentum quickly.
He hit his opening tee shot to the right on the 10th hole, put his approach into a front bunker and then caught that clean and sent it over the green. He missed a 4-foot putt and took double bogey, although it helped that it's about a 250-yard walk to the next tee.
"Nice first round," he said. "Not a very nice first hole, mind you."
Not much about it was nice for Woods, whose first-round scoring average is more than two strokes higher than it was a year ago at the same tournaments. There is no cut at the BMW Championship, so he at least has three days to figure it out.
Notebook: Poulter bounces back after opening double bogey
LEMONT, Ill. (AP) — Ian Poulter put the long walk between the 10th green and the 11th tee at the BMW Championship to good use.
Poulter, who needs a strong performance this week to advance to the Tour Championship, opened with a double bogey on 10 on Thursday. But he calmed himself down as he walked the 250 yards that separate 10 and 11, and went on to post the best score of the afternoon groups.
Poulter was third at 5-under 66, two strokes behind leader Matt Kuchar.
"I was glad it was a long walk from the 10th green to the 11th tee, that's all I can say," he said. "Double bogey is not how you want to start the third FedEx event. I suppose the only good way of looking at it is there's 71 holes to go. I bounced back pretty good."
Poulter made birdies on the long par 3s on the back nine, eagled the par-5 15th hole and chipped in on 18 from 20 yards for another birdie to make the turn at 4 under.
"I wasn't really worried, I just didn't want to start with a double. Especially on that easy of a hole," Poulter said of the 10th, which produced just eight bogeys and two doubles Thursday.
And not in this tournament.
Poulter missed out on the Tour Championship at last year's BMW by the slimmest of margins. He dunked his approach into the water on the final hole and made bogey, leaving him outside the top 30 by less than half a point, the smallest margin in the three-year history of the series.
Poulter came to the BMW in 44th place in the FedEx Cup standings, and estimated he needs a top-10 finish to make the Tour Championship in two weeks.
"They had to take it down to a decimal point. I don't want no decimal points this year," Poulter said. "I'm going to win this golf tournament and I want to win at East Lake and I want to go and enjoy myself at the Ryder Cup. So that's my goal."
NOT A FAN: There are putt-putt courses Phil Mickelson would enjoy more than Cog Hill.
Mickelson has made no secret of his dislike for Cog Hill, the longtime home of the Western Open that is now one of the rotating sites of the BMW Championship. His contempt has only grown since Rees Jones renovated it ahead of last year's BMW.
"It's interesting," Mickelson said when asked his impressions of the course after shooting a 1-over 72 Thursday.
There was some thought Lefty might even skip the third round of the FedEx Cup. He's at 14th in the standings after the first two events, and most likely would have made the Tour Championship even if he'd stayed home this week.
He's here, but he skipped the pro-am to play at Butler National — a course clearly more to his liking.
"That's in great shape," he said. "The greens there were just pristine, and I had a nice, relaxing day."
SHARP-DRESSED MAN: Ryan Moore's snazzy duds drew as much attention as his score.
Moore did his best Bobby Jones imitation at the BMW Championship on Thursday, wearing a tie tucked beneath his black sweater.
"I bought it a couple of days ago," he said. "I was just walking around a store and thought, 'You know, I might wear some ties this week.' Just sounded good. I saw the weather was only going to be about 70 to 75 degrees. I can definitely handle a sweater and tie in those temperatures."
While most players sport clothes from major labels — Nike, Ashworth, Adidas, just to name a few — Moore is his own man. The 27-year-old's outfits come straight from his personal closet, and he favors looks that are a throwback to the Jones and Sam Snead eras.
He'd even consider breaking out a tweed jacket if it was cold enough.
"Everywhere I go, anywhere I've worn it, fans love it," Moore said of his distinctive look. "That was certainly not the purpose at all. I love this look. I love that golf used to have that look, and I like to wear it when I can, when weather permits. That's just how I like to look. It's not for attention or anything like that."
No, Moore gets enough with his game. He closed with five straight birdies, and his 29 on the back nine is a Cog Hill record. At 6-under 65, he's a stroke behind leader Matt Kuchar.
"That's just golf," Moore said. "Just a great way to finish."
OUCH! Scott Verplank promised Charlie Wi a steak dinner for getting him into the BMW Championship.
He might want to buy his doctor one, too.
Verplank said Thursday his achy left wrist feels better than it has in weeks after having a cortisone shot Monday night. Verplank has been struggling with tendinitis most of the year, and it got so bad last week he withdrew from the second round of the Deutsche Bank Championship because he could no longer grip the club through his swing.
"It wasn't very good for the first five, six, seven holes. After that it wasn't that bad," said Verplank, whose wrist was bound tightly with white tape and then covered with a black wrap. "It hurt a lot less today than it did any other time in the last two or three weeks."
Verplank played the first five holes at 4 over, and finished with a 76. That's 12 strokes behind first-round leader Matt Kuchar.
Verplank figured his season was over when he left Boston. But Wi birdied the last hole Monday to bump Verplank up to No. 70 in the FedEx Cup standings and put him in the field for the BMW. His doctors told him he wouldn't damage the wrist any further by playing, so Verplank got the cortisone shot, his first of the year.
There are no alternates in the playoffs, so it wasn't as if Verplank deprived someone else of a spot in the field.
"I probably shouldn't have come here. But nothing's going to split, splinter, explode or tear," Verplank said. "I've been playing with it all year, anyway."
AYE, AYE CAPTAIN: Ian Poulter could have a future as a Ryder Cup captain.
Asked what he thought of Corey Pavin's picks for the U.S. team earlier this week, the Englishman said they didn't come as any surprise. Tiger Woods was all but a lock, and many figured Pavin would pick Zach Johnson and Stewart Cink, major champions who have already played Ryder Cups on the road.
Pavin's last pick, though, was Rickie Fowler, the first PGA Tour rookie to make a U.S. Ryder Cup team.
"They were the four picks that I would have chosen," Poulter said Thursday. "Guys were discussing it for a few days ... and I think they were most people's picks."
WORLD RANKING: Phil Mickelson's meltdown in the final round at the TPC Boston will make his road to No. 1 a lot tougher at Cog Hill.
For Mickelson to go atop the world ranking for the first time in his career, he would have to finish no worse than second place by himself, and that's provided Tiger Woods finishes out of the top seven.
Mickelson can go to No. 1 with a win no matter what Woods does.
Steve Stricker also has a chance at the BMW Championship. He would have to win, and have Woods finish out of the top 17 and Mickelson finish worse than second.
-- Nancy Amrour
LPGA
Wie eyes 2nd straight win at NW Arkansas event
ROGERS, Ark. (AP) — With a pair of wins in the last 11 months, Michelle Wie is finally turning potential into success.
This week, the big-hitting former prodigy will try for her second straight LPGA Tour victory, part of a loaded field at the P&G NW Arkansas Championship. The 54-hole event begins Friday and also includes money leader Jiyai Shin, the defending champion, and world No. 1 Ai Miyazato.
In fact, 14 of the top 15 players in the Rolex rankings are entered, with only 10th-ranked Paula Creamer (thumb injury) missing. Wie, ranked No. 7, is coming off a victory late last month in the Canadian Women's Open.
"I felt like it was a frustrating season for me so far because I felt like I played a lot better than what my scores were," Wie said. "I guess that happens when you win it — everything just kind of falls into place, and hopefully it will happen again this week. ... I see all the top players are here. I think it's really great for the tournament."
Wie has made all but two cuts since the start of 2009, her official rookie season, and she earned her first career victory in November at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational.
She won in Canada by three strokes — her 12th top-10 finish in the last two seasons.
Last year in Arkansas, outlasting Angela Stanford and Sun Young Yoo in a sudden-death playoff. This is the fourth year for th4 event at Pinnacle Country Club, and with nothing else on the LPGA Tour schedule until Oct. 7, the sport's top players have come to northwest Arkansas for the $2 million tournament, which is presented by Wal-Mart.
"First off, it's a great purse and a great sponsor in P&G, and you know, great golf course and area, and those are all the things that you look for for a major golf tournament in drawing the top players in," said Cristie Kerr, the world's No. 2 player. "They have a good date on the schedule, for us — maybe not for the weather, but for us they have a good date on the schedule."
Ah, yes. The weather.
In 2007, the tournament's inaugural season, the event was called off after 18 holes because of rain. On Thursday, the 2010 edition got off to a rough start when the remnants of Tropical Storm Hermine forced the pro-am to be canceled.
"Wherever any cities have droughts, we've been fixing them wherever we go," Wie said.
Shin said the greens seemed firm when she played earlier in the week, but that might change now.
"I was shocked and then really surprised, but today it's getting soft," she said.
Shin, Kerr and Miyazato have been battling to take over the mantle as the world's top player since Lorena Ochoa retired in May. Miyazato has five victories this season, while Kerr has won twice and Shin once. In addition to being atop the world ranking, Miyazato trails only Shin on the money list.
"Really, all the top six or seven players on the money list is getting really close," Miyazato said. "We have some tournaments like this, only three-day tournaments, so you need to be a little more aggressive and try to make some birdies out there."
In addition to all the top players, former University of Arkansas star Stacy Lewis is in the field. She was leading when the 2007 tournament was called off because of bad weather, and although she's still seeking her first career win, she's No. 20 on the money list thanks to a runner-up finish (to Miyazato) in Mexico in May.
This event also includes another Razorback — current senior Kelli Shean, who received a sponsor's exemption.
-- Noah Trister
Rains cancel LPGA Pro-Am in NW Arkansas
ROGERS, Ark. (AP) — Heavy rain from the remnants of Tropical Storm Hermine has forced the cancellation of the pro-am at the LPGA's P&G Northwest Arkansas Championship.
The tournament issued a statement Thursday saying the rounds were canceled to ensure the safety of those involved and to maintain playing conditions of the course.
The 54-hole tournament runs Friday through Sunday at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers.
The National Weather Service in Tulsa said three to five inches of rain had fallen in northwestern Arkansas since midnight.
European Tour
Colsearts shoots 62 for lead at Dutch Open
HILVERSUM, Netherlands (AP) — Nicolas Colsearts of Belgium shot an 8-under 62 to upstage a trio of European Ryder Cup players and take the first-round lead at the Dutch Open.
The long-hitting Colsearts birdied five of his last six holes Thursday to sit two shots ahead of Kenneth Ferrie of England and Shiv Kapur of India. Ryder Cup player Ross Fisher was among seven players tied for third after shooting 65.
Colsearts was among the early starters, who benefited from the greens rolling smoothly after heavy overnight rain. Martin Kaymer had it tougher in the afternoon and finished with a 67 in his first round since winning the PGA Championship last month.
His Ryder Cup teammate, Francesco Molinari, also started late and shot a 68.
