Woods posts best start in 3 years with 64
NORTON—Tiger Woods had his lowest opening round in three years on Friday at the Deutsche Bank Championship but it still wasn’t enough to match leader Seung-yul Noh.
Noh, a rising star from South Korea in his first season on the PGA Tour, ran off four straight birdies early in his round and closed with back-to-back birdies for a 9-under 62.
That gave him a one-shot lead over Chris Kirk, whose 23 putts included an eagle on the new 18th hole.
Woods stirred up a big gallery on a glorious summer day in New England with six straight birdies, which featured four putts of at least 12 feet and flop shot executed so perfectly that it cleared a steep bunker and landed in an area of the green no larger than a hula hoop. His lone bogey on the final hole gave him a 7-under 64, putting him in a three-way tie for third with Jeff Overton and Ryan Moore.
The average score was just under 70 on a perfect day for scoring.
Rory McIlroy struggled off the tee, though he judged one of the lies in the rough beautifully on the ninth hole, a 7-iron into tap-in range that led to a 65.
Noh stole the show, even if hardly anyone was paying attention or was not really sure who he was.
“Some people say Kevin Na, like, ‘Go Kevin,’” Noh said.
The 21-year-old from South Korea won his first Asian Tour title at age 17, and he chose to come over to America this year to ease his travel. He made it through Qschool in December, and on Friday turned in his strongest PGA Tour round to date.
He went to work with coach Sean Foley in May, joining a stable that includes Woods, Hunter Mahan and Justin Rose.
“He’s a good kid,” Mahan said after a muchneeded 68. “If Foley says, ‘Do this 1,000 times,’ he’ll go home and do it 1,000 times.”
The start was more meaningful for Overton, whose game has practically disappeared since he played on the Ryder Cup team two years ago. He is No. 83 in the FedEx Cup standings, and only the top 70 advance next week to the third playoff event at Crooked Stick in Indiana — his home state. (AP)