First round: Rookie Turnesa surprised by early success
MADISON, Miss. (AP) -- Marc Turnesa was shocked to see a PGA TOUR rookie's name atop the Viking Classic leaderboard Thursday -- especially his own.
"To be honest with you, I'm surprised I shot 7 under," Turnesa said. "I didn't really feel like I was hitting it great and I didn't hit it great. But putting is a great equalizer. If you can make putts you can get away with a lot of things."
The 30-year-old rookie with a celebrated family history on the PGA TOUR used a 22-putt round for a 65 to take a one-stroke lead over Brian Gay at the Annandale Golf Club. In a field dotted with big names needing a little boost after falling on hard times, Turnesa rolled in eight birdies and took advantage of ideal morning conditions.
"I think the 22 putts shows that I putted well, but it shows I didn't hit a lot of greens," the Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., resident said. "A couple of putts in from the fringe and that number looks pretty great."
An eclectic group of players is chasing Turnesa and Gay. Two-time U.S. Open champion Lee Janzen, who hasn't won on TOUR since 1998, Jay Williamson, Dicky Pride, Nathan Green, Brad Adamonis and Andrew Buckle shot 67s, and 14 others had 68s.
Though Janzen and Gay have won before, most of the players atop the leaderboard are looking for a breakthrough. Take Williamson as an example. He turned pro in 1990 with irregular success. At 41, he's had a pair of near misses in the last two years and feels he's ready.
"I've been out here long enough, I've made enough cuts, it's time for me to get to that next level somehow," Williamson said.
And for Pride, a win would mean no more shifting back and forth between the PGA TOUR and Nationwide Tour.
"It's just brutal," Pride said. "The theory on it is you want to stay on the Nationwide and get fully exempt while you're out there. But when you play for only 10 percent of what you normally play for, the reality comes down to I'll make a lot more money out here and this is my job."
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| Thursday's Best |
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The par-5, 522-yard fifth was the easiest with a Thursday scoring average of 4.556.
The par-3, 213-yard second was the toughest with a Thursday scoring average of 3.229.| Round of the Day | ||
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DINERS, DRIVE-INS AND DIVOTS?
PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem had a busy day on Wednesday, jetting from a cooking demonstration at the Viking Classic in Mississippi to Kentucky for the early-week Ryder Cup festivities.
No offense to the fancy culinary fare at the Ryder Cup, where Finchem and his wife joined Team USA and Team Europe for the traditional formal Gala Dinner on Wednesday night, but he probably enjoyed the food a bit more in Mississippi. That's because Finchem made it himself, with a little help from one of the most famous chefs in America.
Guy Fieri, who has appeared in numerous shows on the Food Network (including Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, The Next Food Network Star, Guy's Big Bite and Guy Off the Hook) and has several restaurants in Sonoma County out in California, taught Finchem and Haley Barbour, the governor of Mississippi, how to make a tasty meal. While a large crowd of Viking Classic fans looked on, Fieri -- you might also recognize him for his spiky, bleached blonde hair and recent appearances in T.G.I. Fridays commercials -- entertained the crowd and his two students.
And, at the end, those lucky fans in the crowd got to sample some of the food. Golf, beautiful weather and a scrumptious snack -- talk about a good day!
To view photos from Wednesday's event, click here 
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FORTY-SOMETHINGS DO WELL
A player over the age of 40 has won the Viking Classic five times, including two players over the age of 45 -- Fred Funk in 2004 and Ed Dougherty in 1995. Lee Janzen (44), Jay Williamson (41), Robert Gamez (40), Michael Bradley (42), Todd Hamilton (42), Dan Forsman (50), John Huston (47) and Greg Kraft (44) are all within three strokes of the leader through 18 holes.
| Viking Classic over-40 Champions (since 1994) | ||||||||||||||||||
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DUVAL'S BEST DAY
David Duval shot an opening-round, 3-under-par 69, matching his best round of the 2008 season. Duval has made three cuts in his 15 previous starts this season, including a tie for 39th at the British Open Championship.
Duval also played in the 2006 Viking Classic, where he tied for 50th.
| 10 | Number of bogey-free rounds notched on Thursday. |
| 1 | How many bogeys Marc Turnesa, the leader, had on his card. |
The 13-time PGA TOUR winner has struggled in 2008. Duval has just three sub-70 rounds this season -- all 69s (1st round- John Deere Classic, 2nd round -- British Open Championship).
VIKING VETERANS
Viking Classic veterans playing this week include Jim Gallagher Jr. and Steve Lowery.
Gallagher leads the way with 19 appearances, beginning in 1984 when this tournament was part of the Tournament Players Series. Gallagher has played in the event every year since 1996. He finished 2-over 74 on Thursday.
This is Lowery's 18th appearance in Mississippi. The 2000 champion finished his round at 1-over 73.
How did other past winners fare on Thursday?
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THINGS TO WATCH ON FRIDAY
1. Lee Janzen. Janzen, an eight-time PGA TOUR winner, hasn't added to his win count since the 1998 U.S. Open. He's tied for third after Round 1's 67 -- can he finally get another one this week?
2. The most recent winner. Since defending champion Chad Campbell is playing in the Ryder Cup and D.J. Trahan, the 2006 winner, is absent, that makes 2005 Viking Classic victor Heath Slocum the most recent winner in the field. He opened with a lukewarm 1-over 73 but hopes to do better than that on Friday.
3. Rich Beem. Right now, he's No. 126 on the 2008 PGA TOUR Money List. He needs a strong finish at the Viking Classic -- he fired a 1-under 71 -- to move into the top 125 and retain his PGA TOUR card.
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