Deutsche Bank Championship, Round 1
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By PGATOUR.COM Staff
GOOSEN QUIETLY MAKES LATE PUSH (6:55 p.m.): Retief Goosen had a flair for the dramatic on Friday during the first round of the Deutsche Bank Championship. The quiet man from South Africa elicited a loud cheer from the fans when he drained a 43-footer for eagle on the 18th hole.
"You're always hoping for maybe a birdie on 18, but an eagle was a bonus,'" Goosen said. "I hit a good drive and a solid 6-iron into the green and tried to get it close, and it went in."
Goosen's round of 65 was his best since the opening round of the RBC Canadian Open. He shot four rounds in the 60s there and lost in a playoff but Goosen had only broken 70 once in the three tournaments he'd played since.
"(It was) pretty solid, obviously better than the last few rounds," Goosen said. "But I've been working pretty hard on my game. I was hitting balls here Monday morning already. Nice to see that the hard work is paying off.
"Obviously today the three of us combined were 19-under par, so we were sort of dragging each other along."
Goosen, who tied for 70th last week at The Barclays, played with Jim Furyk and Sean O'Hair on Friday. Furyk tied for the lead at 8 under while O'Hair shot a 66 that left him three strokes off the pace.
"Jim Furyk got off to a great start, and then we were sort of dragged along," Goosen said. "It's nice that we managed to keep up with them. Yeah, the three of us sort of played off each other today." -- Helen Ross
OGILVY BACK IN THE MIX (6:45 p.m.): Geoff Ogilvy won twice in his first five starts of 2009, including the season-opening Mercedes-Benz Championship, to grab the early lead in the FedExCup.
He's only had two top-10s since, though, and the Aussie has slipped down to 12th in the standings. But the way he played Friday in shooting 66 at TPC Boston, Ogilvy might be heading in the other direction come Monday.
"It was pretty solid," Ogilvy said. "I wasn't ever really in trouble. I didn't make putts from everywhere but I didn't miss any putts I should have made. And all the putts I had from long range ended up tap-ins so my speed was pretty good.
"Compared to the last few tournaments I've had it was pretty good."
The round of 5 under was Ogilvy's best since he shot 63 in the third round of the Memorial Tournament. He had only shot three rounds in the 60s in five tournaments since, and he missed the cut at The Barclays last week.
Ironically, the early exit and the unusual Friday start at TPC Boston gave Ogilvy a week to work on his swing. What he discovered were "intangibles" and "too hard to explain" but suffice if to say he had a better comfort zone on his downswing.
Another possible explanation?
"Maybe that the end is in sight for the year, (I've) gained a little more enthusiasm,'" Ogilvy said. "I've always had trouble playing lots and lots of tournaments, especially when I play rubbish, keeping my motivation and I have been playing a bit rubbish the last two to three months.
"And the fact that I had a week -- Friday start and a Friday exit -- I've had a full week to kind of put my head down and say, okay,l we've got a few tournaments to go. I've got quite a lot of golf after the Presidents Cup, more than normal, but I guess the real season ends in a couple of weeks. -- Helen Ross
ROUND 1 WRAPPING UP (6 p.m.): The first round of the Deutsche Bank is wrapping up from TPC Boston, where Steve Stricker and Jim Furyk share the lead at 8-under 63. Both men were bogey free and both were spot on with their irons.
Tiger Woods, meanwhile, was not. He had trouble off the tee at times and again struggled with the putter, taking 30 of them. He also showed some serious frustration on the par-4 fifth, where, after an errant tee shot that resulted in a penalty, he slammed his driver to the ground in disgust. "How about every hole?," said Woods when asked about that moment of frustration.
Angel Cabrera and Justin Leonard had no such frustration. They finished in 6 under, along with four others. Another stroke back of that are Jerry Kelly, Sean O'Hair, Geoff Ogilvy and Troy Matteson. Nine others, including Padraig Harrington and David Toms, are yet another shot back from that. You get the idea.
In all, only 25 of the 99 players in the field are currently over par. With ideal weather and a soft golf course it's no wonder scoring was so good in the first round. -- Brian Wacker
FURYK FIRES 63 OF HIS OWN (5:25 p.m.): Jim Furyk has always been one of the best ballstrikers on the PGA TOUR and today he couldn't have been better -- literally. Furyk hit every green in regulation and made eight birdies on his way to an 8-under 63 to grab a share of the first-round lead with Steve Stricker. That's the seventh time in his career, by the way, that he's been 100 percent in greens in regulation; the last time he had done so before Friday was in the first round of this year's Masters.
For good measure, Furyk also hit 13 of 14 fairways. The 63 also represents the lowest score of Furyk's season -- which is saying something for a guy who has seven top-10s. On the flip side, it's just the fourth round in the 60s in his last 14.
Furyk's 8-under 63 also ties for his lowest first-round score in his career.Furyk shot 63s in the first round of the 1997 GTE Byron Nelson Golf Classic and the 2006 Canadian Open. Both of those rounds, however, were on par-70 courses. Furyk did shoot 9-under 64 in the first round of the 2003 Mercedes Championships, and had opening-round 8-under 64s at the 2001 Buick Open and the 2003 Honda Classic.
The key for Furyk will now be not only how he plays tomorrow, but how he plays in the final two rounds. Furyk is tied for fifth on TOUR in first-round scoring average and is 19th in scoring before the cut. The weekend has been the Achilles Heel for Furyk -- he's 115th in Round 3 scoring and 69th in the final round. -- Brian Wacker and Mike McAllister
Below is a look at Furyk's scorecard from today:
MATTESON'S MOVE (5 p.m.): Troy Matteson is doing things the hard way. Matteson came into the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup ranked dead last at No. 125. But he tied for 20th at The Barclays to give himself some breathing room -- moving up 42 spots and into the field for the Deutsche Bank Championship.
He's continuing his good play at TPC Boston, too. Matteson rolled in a 21-footer for birdie on the 18th hole to shoot 66 that left him three strokes off the lead held by Steve Stricker.
The Georgia Tech product, who has a degree in civil engineering, set the tone for the day when he shot 32 on the front that included birdie putts of 10, 8, 18 and 3 feet. He likely needs to finish 31st or higher to advance to the BMW Championship next week. -- Helen Ross
KUCHAR IN WITH A 65 (4:43 p.m.): Matt Kuchar is a Floridian by birth, as well as by current residence. But he considers Atlanta a second hometown after playing golf at Georgia Tech and graduating with a degree in management. He met his wife, Sybi, there, too, and she played tennis for the Yellow Jackets.
Small wonder, then, that Kuchar is so keen on making the field for THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola. And he continues to give himself a chance with solid play during the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup.
Kuchar started last week ranked 77th in the standings but his tie for 28th at The Barclays moved him up 17 spots. That came despite a round of 75 at Liberty National on Sunday that Kuchar called a "little bit of a bummer."
He's off to another good start at TPC Boston, too, as a 65 has him sharing second, two strokes behind Steve Stricker. Kuchar, who likely needs to finish 63rd or better to advance to the BMW Championship, birdied three of his last four holes.
"It was a very good opening round," Kuchar said. "I'm quite happy. Really hoping to just keep moving up. Making THE TOUR Championship is a big deal to me. East Lake is a course I play a lot. Atlanta is a hometown for me, so we'd really like to get back there." -- Helen Ross
BACK ON TRACK (4:30 p.m.): Jason Dufner has shown flashes of brilliance this season -- a second-round 63 at the RBC Canadian Open, a final-round 65 at the St. Jude Classic presented by FedEx. The last three weeks? Not so much. Dufner, ranked 57th in the FedExCup standings, came into this week off three straight missed cuts, having only broken 73 once in his last six rounds. Throw that out the window this week, though, as Dufner is 5 under through his first 11 holes. Dufner has missed just one fairway and two greens in regulation all day. He's also taken just 16 putts. -- Brian Wacker
THIS AND THAT (3:55 p.m.): Defending champion Vijay Singh's stellar track record at the Deutsche Bank Championship includes four top-4 finishes in five previous starts (4-2003, 1-2004, 2-2006, T60-2007, 1-2008). Despite finishing 1-over 285 in 2007, he is still a collective 65 under in six previous starts at TPC Boston. The 34-time PGA TOUR winner needs a good finish this week to move up from his current 78th position in the FedExCup standings. ...
Heath Slocum, winner of last week's The Barclays and the third-ranked player in the FedExCup standings, posted a 2-under 69 on Friday. He is making his seventh start at the Deutsche Bank Championship, with his best outing coming in 2008 (T15). His only other top-25 finish came in 2007 (T23). ...
It was a roller coaster ride for Hunter Mahan during the opening round of the Deutsche Bank Championship. He stood at 6 over through seven holes before rallying with five birdies over his next nine to move to 1 over through 16 holes. He closed with a double bogey on the par-3 eighth and a birdie on the par-4 ninth for a 2-over 73. ...
Ernie Els, fresh off of a tie for second at The Barclays (one of four top-8 finishes in his last six starts) is making his second start at the Deutsche Bank Championship, with a tie for third in his inaugural appearance in 2008.
Five rookies remain in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup -- Webb Simpson, Jeff Klauk, James Nitties, Marc Leishman and Scott Piercy (67). Only Simpson (No. 41) is currently inside the top 70, the cutoff point to qualify for next week's BMW Championship. ...
Nine players have now started in all 10 career PGA TOUR Playoff events. The list includes Robert Allenby, Stewart Cink, Tim Clark (70), Jim Furyk, Sergio Garcia (70), Mahan (73), Singh, Steve Stricker (63) and Camilo Villegas (70). -- John Bush
SCORING SLOWING DOWN (3:35 p.m.): Scoring has definitely slowed here in the afternoon at TPC Boston, where only a handful of players have a chance to challenge for the lead. If Steve Stricker's lead does in fact hold up, it would be the third time in his career that he has held at least a share of the 18-hole lead.
The last time Stricker held the 18-hole lead? At Colonial earlier this year, where he won in a playoff. -- Brian Wacker
| Steve Stricker when leading after 18 holes | ||||||||||||
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FURYK OUT FAST (3:11 p.m.): One of the few players from the afternoon wave making a run at Steve Stricker's lead is Jim Furyk, who just made the turn in 5-under 31 after birdieing five of his first six holes.
Furyk has yet to miss a fairway or a green in regulation and has been solid on the greens, too, with 14 putts. He also has a solid record both here and in the Playoffs, having tied for seventh in 2008 and 13th in 2003 at TPC Boston. In nine Playoffs starts, Furyk has seven top-15s, including a tie for 15th at last week's Barclays. -- Brian Wacker
HARRINGTON NOT EXACTLY HAPPY (3 p.m.): The good news for Padraig Harrington? He managed a nice 4-under 67 on a course in which he hasn't always played well. The bad news? Harrington, who starts this week 14th on the FedExCup points list, wasn't exactly thrilled with how he played.
"I didn't play very well out there, to be honest," said the three-time major winner. "My focus wasn't great and I didn't hit it well off the tee. But I got it close on the greens, I holed a few putts and ran a lot of putts close, as well."
Harrington hit just 7 of 14 fairways in his round, which started on the 10th hole when he found the hazard on his opening drive, had to take a penalty shot and scrambled to make par.
"If you're going to be aggressive off the tee, you can't hit it in the hazard," Harrington said. "So be it. It was nice to make a par on that hole."
It was even nicer to roll in a 55-foot eagle putt on the par-5 18th, particularly after another less-than-impressive tee shot.
"Funny enough, the tee shot I was a little bit worried about running out and probably didn't commit to it and kind of hit it short left," Harrington said. "(He) hit 5 wood up to the green and had a long putt. It looked like it was going to be safe for the birdie, but it was nice to roll it in for eagle." -- Mike McAllister
HANGING AROUND (2:40 p.m.): A couple of players who are hovering around the top 30 cutline in points for THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola certainly had to be pleased with their rounds on Friday.
Justin Leonard, currently 36th in points, shot a 6-under 65, his lowest round in his last nine starts.
"It felt pretty easy at times, and you know, other times I had to get a couple balls up-and-down," said Leonard about his bogey-free round. "With the greens as fast as they are, you're going to have to make some five- or six-footers, and obviously I made all of those today. So it was a fun day."
Meanwhile, Jerry Kelly, ranked 28th coming into this week, carded a 5-under 66 -- the same number he shot in his last round at The Barclays on Sunday.
"I felt pretty good last Sunday," Kelly said. "I looked at myself, and I was 33rd going into the final day and shot 5-under to get myself back inside that top 30. You know, I know what I need to do, and that was kind of the start of it for me, and I'd like to just keep flowing from there."
No matter what Kelly does the rest of the week, he is assured of moving on to next week's BMW Championship. Leonard doesn't have that kind of guarantee, but he's in great shape after Friday's round.
"These next two weeks are really important," Leonard said. "I want to get in THE TOUR Championship, and that's a goal of everybody at the end of the year. So a good couple of weeks will take care of that and build some momentum going into The Presidents Cup." -- Mike McAllister
TIGER UPDATE (2:10 p.m.): Last week, Tiger Woods was plagued by a balky putter. In fact, whatever struggles Woods had this year can be attributed to the that and this week is no exception.
In shooting a ho-hum round of 1-under 70, Woods' ballstriking continued to be solid, while his putting continued to be, well, less than solid. Woods took 30 putts and despite a half-dozen one-putts, he missed four putts from inside 10 feet, including three from the 7-10 foot range. And other than two lengthy putts of 36 and 19 feet, Woods didn't make anything over 6 feet, 1 inch all day today.
As a result, Woods is seven off the lead and well off the pace on a day in which scoring is very good. -- Brian Wacker
STRICKER SHOOTS 63 (1:52 p.m.): As mentioned earlier, Steve Stricker has had a remarkable run through the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup each of the last two-plus seasons. That continued last week at The Barclays and it continues this week at the Deutsche Bank Championship, where he just turned in an 8-under 63 to take an early two-shot lead.
The 63 by Stricker nearly tied for his low round of the year -- he shot rounds of 61 and 62 at the Bob Hope Classic and opened with a pair of 63s at Colonial before winning in a playoff.
On the day, Stricker hit 12 of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens in regulation while taking just 25 putts. It turns out he also did a pretty good job of foreshadowing, too.
"I enjoy this course. I really like what they've done here the last few years," Stricker said yesterday. "If we have weather like this for four more days, I think the scoring is going to be good."
For Stricker, it was better than good and if you look at his performance this season. Coming into this week, Stricker was second in FedExCup points and fourth in the Official World Golf Rankings -- all products of numbers like these: second in scoring average; fifth in putting average; 10th in birdie average; third in proximity to the hole; first in scrambling.
Here's one other number: first on the leaderboard (at least for now). -- Brian Wacker
Below is a look at Stricker's scorecard from today:
THREE IN WITH 65s (1:30 p.m.): Scott Verplank, Angel Cabrera and Justin Leonard are all in the clubhouse at 65 -- proving that you don't have to be long off the tee to play well here at the 7,400-yard TPC Boston.
Cabrera is certainly long off the tee -- he ranks seventh on the PGA TOUR at 305.1 yards -- but neither Verplank or Leonard rank inside the top 125 with both men averaging just over 280 yards off the tee. When you hit irons as well as Verplank and Leonard, though, distance doesn't always matter. Verplank hit 15 of 18 greens in regulation today, while Leonard hit 13 of 18 while taking just 26 putts. Cabrera wasn't too shabby in that department either -- he hit 13 greens and took 25 putts. -- Brian Wacker
STRICKER'S STREAK ENDS (1:05 p.m.): So much for the birdie streak and unless Steve Stricker birdies his last two holes today, so much for tying the course record of 61.
After making five straight birdies, Stricker has rattled off three straight pars, including one on the par-5 seventh, where he found a greenside bunker on his approach from 67 yards. He got up-and-down to save par, but the seventh hole is the fifth-easiest on the course right now. with a stroke average of 4.762.
In case you were wondering, Stricker's five straight birdies earlier today weren't even close to a PGA TOUR record. Mark Calcavecchia made nine straight earlier this year at the RBC Canadian Open, breaking the previous record of eight, which was achieved by a half-dozen players. -- Brian Wacker
CHASING A RECORD (12:45 p.m.): Steve Stricker, with a few holes left, still has a shot at the TPC Boston course record, currently held by Mike Weir and Vijay Singh at 10 under. Stricker is 8 under through his round, but he'll have to finish on two of the four toughest holes on the course through the morning wave, the par-3 8th and the par-4 9th. -- Mike McAllister
| Lowest scores by round through the first six years of the Deutsche Bank Championship | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sip of Maginnes | |
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TIGER UPDATE (12:30 p.m.): Tiger Woods might have a win and a pair of runner-up finishes in his career at this event, but so far he hasn't been able to generate any momentum in today's opening round.
Woods is 1 under through his first 13 holes with just two birdies and a bogey and he just took a penalty after an errant tee shot on No. 5 (he started on the back).
Only once in five trips to TPC Boston has Woods failed to break par in the opening round of the Deutsche Bank Championship -- he shot a 72 in 2007 before eventually finishing in a tie for second -- and only three other times has he failed to break par period (72 in the second round in 2006; 73-72 in the second and third rounds in 2005). -- Brian Wacker
HARRINGTON HOLDING HIS OWN (12:18 p.m.): Padraig Harrington's tee shots haven't been very accurate thus far. But it hasn't done much damage to his score.
With four holes left on his round, Harrington is 5 under and tied for second on the leaderboard -- despite hitting only four of 11 fairways.
In fact, Harrington's round started on an negative note when he suffered a penalty stroke after being forced to take a drop following his opening tee shot on the par-4 10th. But he saved par when he holed a 14-foot putt.
Harrington also drained a 19 1/2-foot birdie putt on the 16th, and a 24-foot, 5-inch birdie putt for birdie on the third. But the biggest roar of the day came after he holed a putt from 55 feet for eagle just off the fringe at the par-5 18th. -- Mike McAllister
GAY ON TARGET (12:05 p.m.): Through his first 11 holes, Brian Gay hit five approach shots within 10 feet of the pin, including a stretch of three consecutive holes (see chart below). Angel Cabrera, meanwhile, has hit three consecutive approaches within 10 feet. Gay, who began Thursday's round on the 10th tee, currently is 2 under on his round, while Cabrera is 4 under through 14 holes. -- Mike McAllister
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A SEA OF RED (12 p.m.): This is a day to go low at TPC Boston. There are 49 players in the morning wave and all but 12 are under par for their rounds.
Among those struggling? Hunter Mahan, who dearly wants to be one of Fred Couples' two Captain's Picks for the U.S. Presidents Cup Team on Tuesday.
Mahan had a dreadful start to his back nine, his first of the day -- making four bogeys and one double in his first six holes. He rallied with birdies at Nos. 17 and 18 and just got up and down at the drivable par-4 fourth hole for another to move back to 3 over. Mahan doesn't have to worry about advancing to the BMW Championship, though. He entered the Deutsche Bank Championship ranked 15th in the FedExCup standings and the top 33 are safe for another week. -- Helen Ross
MAJOR PAIRING (11:50 a.m.): When the trio of Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els and Geoff Ogilvy tee off today at 12:58 p.m. ET, it will be the first time the three former major champions have been in the same threesome in a PGA TOUR event.
The pairings for the first two rounds of each Playoffs event are determined by the FedExCup points rankings. Mickelson, Els and Ogilvy currently stand 10th, 11th and 12th, respectively, in points.
Mickelson and Els, both three-time major winners, have been paired together in two previous events this year -- the first two rounds of the U.S. Open and the first two rounds of the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational.
Mickelson was last paired with Ogilvy, the 2006 U.S. Open champ, in the third round of the Masters in April.
Ogilvy and Els were last paired together in the final round of THE PLAYERS Championship. They also played together in the first two rounds of the Northern Trust Open and the Masters. -- Mike McAllister
BUBBLE BOY (11:41 a.m.): Daniel Chopra has the dubious distinction of being the last man into the field at the Deutsche Bank Championship.
Chopra started the Playoffs ranked No. 100 and maintained that spot after tying for 58th at The Barclays last week. He recovered well after opening with a 77 that otherwise could have spelled disaster but needs a big finish at the Deutsche Bank Championship to advance another week.
The Swede is continuing his good play at TPC Boston, too. He's played his first nine holes in 4 under and is three shots off the lead held by Steve Stricker.
Chopra started on the back and set the tone for the day when he made a 6-footer for birdie at No. 10. He then reeled off three in a row starting at No. 15 -- sinking birdie putts of 10, 13 and 20 feet. -- Helen Ross
ON THE REBOUND (11:30 a.m.): Greg Chalmers didn't overanalyze the FedExCup points system at the beginning of the year. He did pay attention to the thresholds, though -- 125 for The Barclays, 100 for the Deutsche Bank Championship, 70 for the BMW Championship and the all-important top 30 for THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola.
The Aussie knew he put himself behind the eight-ball when he missed the cut at The Barclays and dropped from 79th to No. 94 in the standings. So far at TPC Boston, though, Chalmers is taking care of business -- playing his first 13 holes in 4 under, which leaves him one shot off the current lead.
"I've always gone with the theory that if you play well everything else will sort itself out," Chalmers had said on the range Tuesday. "So whatever the rules and regulations and the points and this and that, they're all negated by the fact that I have to play well. So I didn't really look at the ins and outs of it.
"I knew for the first one I had to be in the 125. I knew the breakdown of what got it but I didn't know if I won a tournament that I'd get 5 points or 500. I just knew that I had to play well."
Chalmers hasn't made a bogey during today's first round. He started on the back nine and rolled in a 33-inch putt for birdie at No. 17. Chalmers chipped in at the par-5 second and added another birdie at the drivable par-4 fourth when he got up and down from over the green.
That's a far cry from the 82 he shot in the second round at Liberty National -- and much more like the way Chalmers played in tying for second at the Buick Open five weeks ago.
"I was disappointed with my performance last week," he said. "But ultimately, it seems like every week out here there's some kind of pressure anyway. I have a list of things I'd love to achieve, but really, my crystal ball doesn't work so well sometimes. I can't tell you what's going to happen."
So Chalmers is going out to try to make something happen, instead. -- Helen Ross
STRICKER ON A HOT STREAK (11:15 a.m.): If Steve Stricker keeps playing the way he is right now, he might have a new nickname soon. Perhaps Mr. September.
Stricker, who was a runner-up at last week's Barclays (after missing a 10-foot putt on the last hole that would have forced a playoff), is off to a strong start here at the Deutsche Bank Championship, where he's 5 under through his first 10 holes.
Stricker has missed just one fairway and one green in regulation so far and has the flat stick working with only 14 putts through those 10 holes.
For his career, in Playoffs events excluding THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola, Stricker has five top-10s in seven events and has never finished outside the top 20 (see chart below). Not to get too ahead of things, but you get the feeling he's going to continue that trend this week (click here to follow his round live with Shot Tracker). -- Brian Wacker
| Steve Stricker in the Playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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TWEET OF THE DAY (11 a.m.): "On the putting green at the Deutsche Bank getting some work done while everyone is out playing." -- Paul Casey (@Paul_Casey ) about an hour ago.
Casey hasn't played since the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational, where he withdrew in the first round with a rib injury. He also pulled out of each of the first two events in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, though has since listed himself as "probable" for next week's BMW Championship outside Chicago. -- Brian Wacker
WHO'S IN, WHO'S NOT ... YET (10:47 a.m.): Anyone in the top 33 in the FedExCup standings coming into this week is already guaranteed a spot in the field for next week's BMW Championship in Chicago, where the top 70 players in the standings will advance to after this week.
That means that Paul Goydos is already in and that Anthony Kim isn't. Kim comes into this week 34th in the standings, but he is off to a solid start so far at 1 under through his first nine holes this morning.
Also not guaranteed a spot next week: Ryan Moore. Despite winning the Wyndham Championship the week before the Playoffs for the FedExCup began, he is 35th. If there's a better example of how important a win is in the Playoffs compared to a win in the regular season than the one of Moore and Barclays winner Heath Slocum, you'd be hard-pressed to find it. -- Brian Wacker
EAGLE LANDS FOR HARRINGTON (10:34 a.m.): Padraig Harrington continues to show that his struggles amid swing changes and erratic iron play, are a thing of the past. The three-time major champion just made the turn from the back to the front in 3 under here at TPC Boston, where he bombed in a 55-foot putt on the 18th hole for eagle (also our LIVE@ hole for the week; click here to watch live).
That start has Harrington hovering near the top of the leaderboard right now, just two back of Scott Verplank for the moment. Harrington does have company, though -- eight other guys, including Steve Stricker, are also at 3 under right now. -- Brian Wacker
VERPLANK GOING LOW (10:23 a.m.): Scott Verplank, who moved from 61st to 37th in the FedExCup standings thanks to a tie for ninth at The Barclays, is looking to make another big jump this week. Verplank just made the turn in 5-under 31 on the front nine here at TPC Boston, where he's bogey-free with three birdies and an eagle so far.
The eagle for the length-challenged Verplank (he averages just over 280 yards off the tee) came on the 550-yard par-5 second, where he hit it to 11 1/2 feet from 223 yards out. Verplank rolled in the putt and added the three birdies over his next five holes.
Verplank hasn't won since the 2007 EDS Byron Nelson Championship, but he's played well this year with five top-10s, including three in a row at one point in June and July. -- Brian Wacker
TIGER MAKES IT OFFICIAL (10:05 a.m.): Tiger Woods (click here to follow his round live with Shot Tracker) said last week that he plans to play all four events in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup. Today, he made his committed to next week's BMW Championship (click here for tickets) at Cog Hill official.
Cog Hill will be a vastly different course, however, than the one Woods obliterated with a 22-under total at the 2007 BMW Championship. After that victory, Rees Jones was brought in -- perhaps in part to try to lure a U.S. Open to the venerable course -- and he made some significant changes. Among them: new, more difficult greens; deeper bunkers; more tee boxes. -- Brian Wacker
THIS WEEK'S HEATH SLOCUM? (9:45 a.m.): If Ryuji Imada hopes to do what Heath Slocum did last week -- be the second-to-last guy to make it into the field then go on to win -- he'll need to rebound from a slow start this morning. Imada is 1 over through his first two holes with a bogey on the par-3 11th.
As for whether Slocum's jump from 124th in the FedExCup standings to third following last week's win was too big a jump, sure enough it was a topic among some of the players earlier this week.
"We don't know what the right answer is," Steve Stricker said. "You can debate that until you're blue in the face if you want. I think Heath made a great quote at the end of the tournament after he had won, saying that it was like a playoff -- like a wildcard team that had just gotten into the Playoffs and then he won his first event, and now he's got a chance to win it all."
Indeed it was. The first year of the Playoffs, it was widely thought there was too little movement, meaning that anyone -- in that case Tiger Woods -- with a big lead didn't even have to play all the events to capture the FedExCup. last year, some thought the points system was too volatile.
"If you win, I think you should be up near the top," Stricker continued. "I don't know if 3 is the right number or whatever, but I do think that he should be in THE TOUR Championship for sure, and I think that pretty much guarantees him of that. But I don't know. You could question the points all you want, but I don't know what the right thing is."
Perhaps defending Deutsche Bank Championship winner Vijay Singh summed it up the best, though.
"I just have to go out there and just play and try to win the golf tournament and not worry about where I stand in the points," Singh said. -- Brian Wacker
FAST START (9:15 a.m.): Last year, Vijay Singh won the Deutsche Bank Championship with a tournament-record 22-under 262. This year, we could be looking at a similar winning score with the very early leaders here at TPC Boston already at 3 under through first four or five holes.
In fact, the highest winning score since this event began in 2003 was a 14-under 270 by Olin Browne in 2005. With perfect weather expected for the entire weekend, and the course playing soft right now, don't expect anything but low numbers this week. -- Brian Wacker
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