Woods and McIlroy hit top gear at the BMW

TIGER WOODS shot his lowest opening round on the PGA Tour for 12 years yesterday as he celebrated his wildcard pick for the Ryder Cup in dazzling fashion at the third FedEX Cup play-off event, the BMW Championship. Yet, despite carding an eightunder par 62 to equal the course record, it looked at one stage as though Woods might well be put in the shade by Rory McIlroy. With six birdies on the bounce — his best-ever streak on the PGA Tour — McIlroy had moved to nine-under with four holes still to play and looked set to break 60. At that point, a 59 or even a 58 was possible. But McIlroy faltered slightly over the closing stretch, before eventually signing for a 62 to join Woods at the top of the leaderboard. Woods, the 14-time major champion, had struggled on Thursdays this year — in 14 tournaments to this point, he was an aggregate two over for the first round and 66-under for the other 54 holes — but he put that right in some considerable style. He began on the back nine at Aronimink in Pennsylvania and wasted no time in electrifying another huge gallery by reaching the turn in just 29 shots — the first time he has done so in a PGA Tour event since the 2007 Tour Championship. He went on to win that event by eight. A further birdie at his 10th even raised the possibility of shooting the mythical score of 59 before the gains dried up and he had to settle for ‘only’ a 33 on his back nine. Woods’ shot-making recalled his great years and his decision to go back to the Scotty Cameron putter with which he won most of his majors worked a treat. The 42-year-old is the only member of America’s Ryder Cup team who hasn’t won an event over the past 12 months but he has certainly started like a man hell-bent on putting that right and claiming his first win of this stirring comeback. His next win will represent another landmark since it will be the 80th on the PGA Tour of his incredible career. ‘I made a few putts early in the round, which really got some momentum going for me,’ said Woods. ‘My body remembered the feel of the (Scotty Cameron) putter and how it swings. ‘I was just letting rip on the greens. It’s a fun feeling to have when you’re confident.’