Choi on a roll at PGA’s Northern Trust Open
Published 11:13 pm Thursday, February 14, 2008
LOS ANGELES — K.J. Choi has won tournaments hosted by Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods over the last nine months during a steady climb into the top 10 in the world. Further proof of his staying power came Thursday on a cool, windy morning at Riviera.
He managed to take the early lead at Hogan’s Alley.
On a course that has given him fits, Choi played bogey-free in breezy conditions for a 6-under 65 and a one-shot lead over Kevin Na in the Northern Trust Open.
“This course, I’ve always had trouble putting and my iron shots have always been a problem,” Choi said. “But I felt like they were working today, and I think even the weather was pretty pleasant when I played. So it all worked out good.”
It didn’t work out so well for the late starters, who faced a strong wind that could be heard as much as it was felt, rattling the pins on every green and making it tough to get it close to the hole, especially as the sun and temperatures dropped late in the afternoon.
Seventeen players failed to finish the round before dark.
Chad Campbell and Vaughn Taylor were at 67. Phil Mickelson took a 30-minute commute by plane from his home north of San Diego and opened with a 68, dropping a shot on his final hole when his drive found the bunker and left him unable to reach the green.
Among those who failed to finish was Dustin Johnson, the best among rookies in the first two months. He was at 3 under and had a birdie putt on the 16th, and his bogey-free day included a most unlikely par. After driving over the green on the par-4 10th, he played off the sandy path, over a TV tower and just short, dropping into a bunker. He left his third shot in the bunker.
“I told my caddie, ‘This one should be easier,”’ Johnson said.
He holed it for par.
Those scores were hard to find late in the day, when the wind shifted directions. Geoff Ogilvy played into the wind through the fifth hole, which heads toward the ocean, then found the wind in his face 20 minutes later as he stood on the seventh tee.
“Not possible,” he said after a hard-earned 69. “The whole front nine felt into the wind.”
Sergio Garcia, among several international players making their ‘08 debut on the PGA Tour, opened with a 74. Adam Scott shot 73, while Retief Goosen shot 42 on the front on his way to a 79.
Other tournaments
SBS Open: At Kahuku, Hawaii, Kelli Kuehne shot a bogey-free 5-under 67 to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the LPGA Tour’s season-opening tournament.
Annika Sorenstam, coming off an injury-shortened season where she failed to win for the first time since her rookie season in 1994, opened with a 70 — matching playing partner and defending champion Paula Creamer.
South Korea’s Jacqueline Yang had a 68, and 10-time winner Cristie Kerr was another stroke back along with Meena Lee, Lindsey Wright, Wendy Ward, Erica Blasberg, Ji-Young Oh and 45-year-old Sherri Steinhauer.
The 30-year-old Kuehne attacked the pins with several strong wedge shots from about 100 yards and made a move just before the turn by birdieing Nos. 16-18. She made a 60-foot birdie putt on the par-3 fourth to reach 5 under.
New Zealand PGA Championship: At Christchurch, New Zealand, Canadian David Hearn and Americans Darron Stiles and Matt Bettencourt shot 6-under 66s to top the first-round leaderboard in the New Zealand PGA Championship.
Second-round play earlier today was wiped out by rain and wet conditions, with Australasian and Nationwide tour officials saying they will attempt to play the round Saturday and finish with 36 holes Sunday.
Americans D.A. Points, Rick Price and Dave Schultz opened with 67s, while Michael Campbell, the 2005 U.S. Open winner, shot a 70.
Indonesian Open: At Jakarta, Indonesia, Australia’s David Bransdon and the Netherlands’ Joost Luiten shot 6-under 64s to take the lead in the suspended first round of the Indonesian Open. Thirty-eight players were unable to complete the opening round because of rain.
The tournament is sanctioned by the European and Asian tours.
