Augusta is no stroll in dark

By Thomas Bonk

April 11, 2008 12 AM PT

Times Staff Writer

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- It has been 24 years since a first-round leader, Ben Crenshaw, went on to win the Masters, which can’t be all that comforting to the first-round leaders, Justin Rose and Trevor Immelman.

And speaking of comfort levels, Augusta National Golf Club variety, we present the leader of the unsettled band of primary players, Tiger Woods.

Rose, from England, and Immelman, from South Africa, showed the way Thursday with opening rounds of four-under-par 68, accomplished under trying conditions that tested patience and nerve and blood pressure.

At least they finished before total darkness, but it was close for the last group, thanks to a one-hour fog delay and rounds that averaged about 5 1/2 hours.

European Ryder Cup veteran Lee Westwood, Masters rookie Brian Bateman and shaggy blond Brandt Snedeker are one shot back at 69. Meanwhile, defending champion Zach Johnson and Jim Furyk lead a group of five at two-under 70, with Phil Mickelson only one shot behind that.

Four shots off the pace may not be that big a deal for Woods, although opening day was a picture of problems. He rescued his round with a chip-in eagle at the 15th to get back to even par, which is where he stayed.

He also stayed at zero birdies for the day, the only other time he has done that here since the first round five years ago.

“I really didn’t get anything going my way,” said Woods, who stressed that he played better than his score indicated.

Maybe so, but Woods found it hard to forget his bogey at the par-five 13th when he thought he hit a perfect four-iron and instead missed the green, then saw his ball roll back off the green after his chip from a sandy lie. He followed up with another bogey at the 14th after he drove left of the fairway.

Still, there’s some good news for Woods in his quest for his 14th major, most of it wrapped up in the fact that three rounds remain.

Woods didn’t seem distressed afterward and said he’d like to go low, but then who wouldn’t? He’s just not sure if there are a lot of -- if any -- low numbers out there.

“The way the golf course plays now, you don’t really shoot low rounds here anymore,” he said. “You’ve just got to plod along.”

The plodders were many. Looking back, it was a day when keeping your feet under you wasn’t all that simple. Add it up and you had pin placements on the edge; slinky, quick greens; mounds of major pressure and 7,445 yards of almost universal discomfort.

Justin Leonard, who bogeyed the last hole and still managed a 72, described the situation with accuracy:

“I don’t think anybody feels really comfortable on this course.”

Rose and Immelman were the clear exceptions.

Rose was tied for the lead with Brett Wetterich at 69 after the first round last year but wound up tied for fifth after he double bogeyed the 17th hole in the final round. Rose cautioned against getting too far ahead of himself, which is the right way to play it around here.

“Being in the lead on day one, it really means nothing. It’s a great start,” said Rose, who birdied the last four holes on the front nine. “Obviously you can’t win the tournament the first day, you can only lose it. I haven’t lost it, so it’s a great day.”

Immelman got away without a bogey and brought back memories of his third-round 65 in 2005, when he tied for fifth. His season has been a loss so far, with four missed cuts and no top 10s in eight tournaments, but he’s on a path to make up for all that in a hurry.

Robert Karlsson was so relieved to get to two-under 70 and play well from the beginning, he nearly floated out of his shoes. But he tried not to get ahead of himself in only his second Masters.

“The only thing I’m focused on is three days to go,” Karlsson said. “This is a good start, a lot better than the 78 I shot last year, so who knows?”

That’s a question a bunch of players were asking themselves at nightfall.

It was a long and difficult day for a lot of sad and frustrated people. John Rollins started with seven straight bogeys. Thirteen players shot at least 40 on the front. Fuzzy Zoeller did it on both sides, a 41 on the front and a 40 on the back. Anders Hansen parred the last four holes and still shot 80. Steve Lowery shot 41 on the back despite two birdies.

Then there is Gary Player, who shot an 83, but at least he’s got an excuse: He’s 72 years old.

“That is one tough golf course, the toughest I’ve ever seen,” Player said.

The first-round scoring average was 74.180, more than four shots higher than the average first-round score since records started being kept in 1942.

On the other hand, not everybody suffered. Mark O’Meara celebrated the 10-year anniversary of his Masters victory by opening with a one-under 71 and birdied all three holes of Amen Corner.

“Always nice when you get around those holes,” he said.

The way it played in Thursday’s first round, it’s nice to get around any of them, thank you very much.

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Leaderboard

First-round leaders at Augusta National Golf Club at Augusta, Ga. (Par 72):

Justin Rose: 34-34--68; -4

Trevor Immelman: 34-34--68; -4

Brian Bateman: 35-34--69; -3

Brandt Snedeker: 35-34--69; -3

Lee Westwood: 35-34--69; -3

Ian Poulter: 35-35--70; -2