Canadian Mike Weir shot to the top of the pack yesterday as he made the Blue Monster course at Doral look like a housetrained Persian cat.
The left handed Canadian, winner of last season's World Golf Championship at Valderamma, reduced the notoriously difficult course to a mere 62 in the benign conditions in Miami yesterday.
Weir's 62, a personal career low round, was one outside the course record, set last year by Stephen Ames, and he takes a two shot lead into round two over two players, Stewart Cink and Glen 'All' Day.
Weir began his round with two eagles in the first eight holes to post the lowest first-round score in the 39-year history at Doral and with patience of a saint, the lefty knew that there was a low number coming for somebody out there, it happened to be him.
"The course is definitely there for the taking," he said. "It was a little more than I expected. I made a birdie on the first hole, a 15-footer that got me in a rhythm with my putter. That seemed to set the tone for the day."
Day fired eight birdies in his round of 64 but he felt it could be better, missing makeable opportunities from within 8-feet. Stewart Cink had windier conditions and his 64 was just as good as Weir's 62 in the breeze of the late afternoon.
Coming fresh from a collapse at the Nissan Open in Los Angeles, Davis Love III found his game again and carded an solid opening round of 65, along with Steve Flesch, Harrison Frazar and K.J. Choi of Korea.
And the Big Easy Ernie Els carded a faultless 66 to sit alongside Hal Sutton; Andy Bean and last weeks Nissan Open winner Robert Allenby.
.jpg)
