By Martin Blake and Augusta
Tiger Woods fired early then faltered, leaving England's Lee Westwood to seize the first-round lead in the US Masters at Augusta National today.
Westwood, 38, had said earlier in the week that it was crazy to promote the Masters as a two-man battle between Woods and Rory McIlroy. Today, he walked on to the sodden course and proved his point.
In the lead ... Lee Westwood takes a tee shot on the 11th.Credit: Getty
The Englishman roared through the front nine with four consecutive birdies and picked up shots on the 13th, 15th and 17th holes to card a first-round 67. He leads by a shot from South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen, who birdied four of the past five holes to card a 68, and Peter Hanson of Sweden.
A cluster of players are at three-under 69, but Woods (72) and McIlroy (71) were slightly subdued on the opening day.
Not looking good ... Tiger Woods reacts after hitting a tee shot off the 15th hole.Credit: Getty
Westwood is world No. 3, a winner of 33 international tournaments and a seven-time Ryder Cup team member for Europe, but he has never won a major. One of his several near-misses came here in 2010, when he was in contention until Phil Mickelson blew him away on the final day. He finished runner-up.
It is his 13th visit to Augusta, a fact that surprised him when he was told. ‘‘Hopefully that’s a lucky number for me.’’
His caddie Billy Foster had texted him in the morning to say that the pins had been set up in wicked positions. He knew he would have to be patient. ‘‘This is a golf course I love to play. It seems to suit my game. I hit pretty much every fairway and 16 greens in regulation, and I rolled a few nice putts in.’’
Oosthuizen, the British Open champion in 2010, bombed a six-metre birdie putt at the last hole to card a four-under-par 68 for the outright lead on the opening day. The sweet-swinging South African had a magnificent back nine of 33, including birdies at the 14th, 15th, 17th and 18th, although he dunked his second shot at the par-five 13th into Rae’s Creek.
Woods spent most of the day on the leaderboard but bogeys at the 17th and 18th holes left him, three back from the lead but certainly in the running. He started scratchily and said his motor patterns were out, even on the range. His round included two penalty drops -- one at the par-five second when he hooked into the woods, and at the par-four 18th when he again drove left into the magnolia trees.
‘‘Today I squeezed a lot out of that round,’’ he said. ‘‘Didn’t hit it very good at all. Warmed up bad, too, and it continued on the golf course.’’
Augusta National took some revenge on the players notably Sweden’s Henrik Stenson, who was leading the tournament at five-under when he stood on the 18th tee. A hooked tee shot, a chip-out, a duffed iron shot and three putts later Stenson had carded a quadruple-bogey eight to finish at one-under.
Aaron Baddeley’s one-under-par 71 made him the best of the Australians on the opening day. But Geoff Ogilvy (74), Adam Scott (75) and Jason Day (76) all struggled.