Notebook: Round 1, Administaff Small Business

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• Round 1 Leaderboard:

1. Dan Forsman (-8)
2. John Cook (-7)
T3. Jay Don Blake (-5), Mark Wiebe (-5), Nick Price (-5), Bob Tway (-5)

• Today marks the third time that Forsman has been leading/co-leading after the opening round of a Champions Tour event. Forsman was the leader after the opening round of this year's Regions Charity Classic in Birmingham and also was a co-leader after Round 1 of this 2009 U.S. Senior Open.

• Forsman's 8-under 64 today matches his career low round on the Champions Tour and is the best score posted on the Woodlands CC's Tournament Course in Administaff Small Business Classic history. Forsman had 7-under 64 in the opening round of the 2008 AT&T Championship in San Antonio and also shot 64 (-8) in Round 3 of the 2008 Boeing Classic.

• Forsman's six-birdies in a row (Nos. 15-2) equaled the best birdie streak on the Champions Tour this year. Mark James made six birdies in a row in the first round of the Allianz Championship in early February.

• Stats Comparison of The Leaders:

• Both Forsman and Cook have had some past success on the Tournament Course at The Woodlands CC. When the layout served as the venue for the Shell Houston Open on the PGA TOUR, Forsman finished T6 in 1998 after being a 36- and 54-hole co-leader. Cook finished T2 on this layout in 1999 and T4 in 2001.

Related Links

Leaderboard: Scores
Round 1 recap
Tee Times: Round 2
Complete coverage

• Thus far on the 2009 Champions Tour, Friday leaders/co-leaders have won five of the previous 22 official events played. In the five-year history of the Administaff Small Business Classic, Jay Haas (2006) and Bernhard Langer (2007) are the only first-round leaders to win this event.

• Price's 5-under 67 today was his 11th consecutive sub-70 round, a 2009 best. Price started his run a the Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn. Price is a cumulative 36-under-par during this stretch. Price's round today also gives him seven straight events that he's opened with a round in the 60s, dating back to mid-July when he opened with a 65 at the 3M Championship.

• In his first appearance in Houston since 1986, Tom Watson carded a 3-under 69 today. Watson was the recipient of the Dave Marr Award at a dinner on Thursday evening. The award is named for the 1965 PGA Championship winner and is given annually by the tournament to a person who exemplifies honor, integrity and sportsmanship. Other prominent past recipients of the Dave Marr Award include: former President George W. Bush, Arnold Palmer, Ben Crenshaw and Miller Barber.

• Blake, Price and Langer all played bogey-free rounds today...Forsman's eight birdies were the most by a player in the field...Langer's 4-under 68 today gives him seven consecutive rounds in the 60s at this event...Peter Jacobsen shot even-par 72 in his first appearance at the Administaff Small Business Classic since 2004.

• This and That: Andy Bean hit all 14 fairways today...Blake, Price and Bruce Lietzke all hit 15 of 18 greens in regulation (83.3%), the most in the field...Jack Ferenz and Keith Fergus both had just 23 putts today...Steve Thomas had the longest measured drive of the day, 299 yards at the par-5 6th hole.

• Leonard Thompson withdrew from the tournament before the start of his first round due to sickness and was replaced in the field by Kirk Hanefeld.

• Bob Murphy was disqualified for failing to sign his scorecard after the round.

• Even with lift, clean and place rules in effect today, a total of 35 players posted sub-par rounds and the scoring average was of 71.909, the highest for a Friday in tournament history. Last year on Friday, a total of 41 players finished with rounds under par. Here are first round scoring averages for each year of the Administaff Small Business Classic.