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Friday, January 12, 2001
Leonard leaps KAPALUA, Maui -- There was Ernie Els. In second again, one stroke off the lead.
into lead
Els is in familiar second
place spot, and Woods is
three shots back
Tiger still goes for it
Pro-Am scoresBy Bill Kwon
Star-BulletinThis time, though, he wasn't looking at Tiger Woods ahead of him, but Justin Leonard, who took the opening-round lead in the Mercedes Championships with a 6-under-par 67 at the wind-swept Plantation Course.
Els was next with a 68 after eagling the par-5, 663-yard 18th again.
Woods? He was back amid a closely bunched pack tied for eighth with a 70, but still on track to make a successful defense of the title he won here last year in a dramatic two-hole playoff with Els.
Leonard sat at home watching it last year. Two second-place finishes in 1999 was the closest he came to qualifying for this year's winners-only event. So he was pleased to be here.
"Absolutely. This is a goal right here. To play in this tournament every year," said Leonard. "You know, there's only one guy that is in it (for next year) right now, and that's Steve Stricker. That's a list you like to get on early."
Stricker became the first qualifier for next year's Mercedes Championships by winning the World Match Play Championship in Australia last week.
"Good way to start the year," said Leonard, who birdied 13, 14 and 15 to go to 6-under before parring in.
Three three-putts, including one from 50 feet for a par at 18, prevented Leonard from posting a lower score. The two bogeys on his card -- at the second and seventh holes -- were also the result of three putts.
"They're very hard to read and very large," Leonard said about Plantation's generous greens. "A lot of times you feel lucky to get (within) six or eight feet of the hole. Judging the speed on the longer putts, things like that, it's probably the hardest thing to do."
Local knowledge helps, according to Billy Andrade, who has played the Plantation Course every year since 1988, except last year's Mercedes when he went winless in 1999.
He knew enough to rap his uphill 25-foot eagle putt hard enough at 18 to get it to the hole. The ball went in and Andrade finished with a 69 to share third place with four others, including Jim Furyk and Stewart Cink.
"I hit it extra hard. I probably would have left it short if I hadn't had the knowledge that I had around here," said Andrade, who hit a 5-wood from 260 yards out to set up his eagle. "It's a 20-degree 5-wood that I use for special occasions, like the last hole at the Plantation Course."
Andrade's mindset is that even though it's a new year, he's viewing things as if it's a continuation of the end of 2000 when he finally broke through with a victory at Las Vegas to avoid going back to Q-School.
"I'm going to try to continue my run of being comfortable and confident. I'm continuing where I left off. That's the way I'm thinking," he said.
Els' eagle at 18 -- where else? -- put him in a position he found himself often last year: second. But this time, there are three more rounds to play and Tiger's still lurking.
"I hit a nice drive down there, down wind, hit a 5-iron from about 250. I hit it to six feet and made the putt. Simple as that," Els said.
His only bogey came at the par-5 fifth when he misjudged the wind, used the wrong club and came up short in the hazard. He took a drop and two-putted from 15 feet for bogey.
"It wasn't one of my happiest moments on the golf course," Els said.
There was no question when it was Woods' unhappiest moment yesterday. It came at the par-5 ninth hole when he hacked out of a ball-strewn, knee-high rough, landed in the bunker and two-putted for a bogey.
He finished with a 70, tied with nine others, including playing partner Paul Azinger, the defending champion in next week's Sony Open at the Waialae Country Club.
But the Tiger Watch is still ongoing.
Mercedes Championships
At Kapalua, Maui
Plantation Course
7,263 yards
Par 73 (36-37)
First Round
Justin Leonard 34-33--67 Ernie Els 35-33--68 Jim Furyk 35-34--69 Michael Clark II 34-35--69 Stewart Cink 35-34--69 Billy Andrade 34-35--69 Rory Sabbatini 35-34--69 Paul Azinger 36-34--70 Hal Sutton 36-34--70 Tiger Woods 35-35--70 Carlos Franco 34-36--70 Dudley Hart 34-36--70 Rocco Mediate 34-36--70 Dennis Paulson 33-37--70 Duffy Waldorf 34-36--70 David Toms 34-36--70 Mike Weir 34-36--70 Kirk Triplett 37-34--71 Brad Faxon 35-36--71 Vijay Singh 37-34--71 Chris DiMarco 35-36--71 Phil Mickelson 36-36--72 Robert Allenby 38-34--72 David Duval 34-39--73 Tom Lehman 39-35--74 Loren Roberts 35-39--74 Tom Scherrer 37-37--74 John Huston 36-38--74 Scott Verplank 35-39--74 Notah Begay III 37-38--75 Jesper Parnevik 38-38--76 Jim Carter 41-39--80 Steve Lowery 42-38--80
Wednesday's results Mercedes Championships
PRO-AMJesper Parnevik, Ray Beshoff, Ray Burke, Steve Smythe, Fred Rosen 55; Phil Mickelson, Jerry Phelps, Barry Lewin, Dan Goodfellow, David Futch 56.
Brad Faxon, Harold Pruner, Bart Robinson, Jim Hill, Bob Barrett 57; Jim Carter, George Klempert, Bob Kearbey, Bill Payne, Michael Lang 57; Michael Clark II, Bob Miller, Rodger Rickard, Tom O'Grady, Al Young 57.
David Toms, David Schembri, Bill Rehwald, Fletcher Jones Jr., Patrick Boltes 58; David Duval, John Clarey, Fred Clarey, Doug Hawken, Allan Solheim 58; John Huston, Frank Bridwell, Mike L'Archer, Chris Meagher, Mark Ingram 58; Kirk Triplett, John Joyce, Ed Laur, Ron McMackin, Jeff Pentland 58.
Jim Furyk, Jack Holton, Roy Sakomoto, Woody MacLaren, Pete LaGrasso 59; Tom Scherrer, Ralph Hemingway, Paul Kenneson, David Wood, Michael Ferry 59; Scott Verplank, Jim Everest, Christy Everest, Nathan Yoshioka, Eric Yasunaga 59; Steve Lowery, David Disiere, Mike Dugan, Andrew Schreer, Bob Limbaugh 59.
