Woods makes more history at PGA

Tulsa, OK (Sports Network) - Tiger Woods matched the lowest round in major championship history on Friday with an eight-under-par 62, a historic round that gave him the second-round lead at the PGA Championship at Southern Hills.
Woods stood at seven-under par for his round with a great look at birdie on the 18th hole. His 12-footer for a record-setting 62 seemed destined for the cup, but lipped out after going three-quarters of the way around the hole.
"I knew if I made that putt on the last hole it would have been a nice record to have," said the defending champion. "I thought it was in. I guess a touch firmer."
He finished 36 holes at six-under-par 134, which is good for a two-shot lead over Scott Verplank, who shot a four-under 66 in the morning.
Last year's U.S. Open winner, Geoff Ogilvy (68), and Stephen Ames (69) are tied for third place at minus-three. Woody Austin posted an even-par 70 and is alone in fifth place at two-under 138...Full Story

Daly leads PGA; Woods four back

Tulsa, OK (Sports Network) - John Daly fired a three-under 67 on Thursday to take the lead during the first round of the PGA Championship at a sweltering Southern Hills Country Club.
Temperatures reached over 100 degrees already at Southern Hills, host of the 2001 U.S. Open. The weather is expected to be the same all week, so empty water bottles will be the norm.
Daly, the surprise 1991 winner who was the ninth alternate to start that week, has not had a good year thus far. He has no status on the PGA Tour and, in limited exemptions, has posted zero top 10s. Daly has 17 events under his belt, with five made cuts and four withdrawals.
"I've been putting too much pressure on myself," acknowledged Daly. "Being hurt doesn't help. I haven't really played that bad. I just haven't been able to score. If you can't score, you don't have any confidence."
World No. 1 and defending champion Tiger Woods is in search of his first major of the year. He opened with a one-over 71, which is disappointing considering he flew out of the gate.
He started on the 10th tee Thursday and knocked his approach at 10 to seven feet. Woods drained that putt, and added birdies at 13 and 15 to join the lead at minus-three.
Woods dropped a shot at the 18th when he could not save par from a bunker. That kick-started a run of bad golf which saw Woods bogey two and four. He made birdie at the par-five fifth, but fell back to even-par with a bogey at seven.
At the 245-yard, par-three eighth, Woods came up short with his tee ball. He chipped to 10 feet, but missed the par save. Woods rolled in a three-footer at No. 9 to stay at one-over par.
"I felt like I hit the ball better than my score indicates, which is good," said Woods, who won last week's WGC-Bridgestone Invitational by eight. "That's a good sign heading into the next three days."
The last season Woods failed to win a major was 2004. Since his breakout victory at the 1997 Masters, Woods has only had three seasons without one of golf's big four in his trophy case.
England's Graeme Storm is also three-under par on the course.
Arron Oberholser shot a two-under 68 with several players still on the course at that number.
Mark Wilson, Markus Brier, Camilo Villegas, Lee Westwood and 2006 U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy are in the clubhouse at one-under-par 69.
They are all looking up at Daly, who turned heads in the golf world earlier this season.
During the second round of the St. Jude Championship in early June, Daly showed up with scratch marks on his cheeks. He told authorities his wife attacked him while he was asleep.
The next time Daly surfaced was last month at the British Open Championship, a tournament he won in 1995. Daly took the lead with a chip-in eagle on Thursday, then exploded and missed the cut.
On Thursday, Daly was able to finish off his round.
Daly recorded birdies at four, seven and nine, with the last birdie coming from 10 feet. At the par-five 13th, Daly ran his 25-foot eagle putt three feet by the hole. Daly converted that birdie putt to make it to four-under par.
At the 507-yard, par-four 16th, Daly hit a poor second shot en route to a bogey. That dropped him to minus-three, but the 1991 champion hung on with pars at the last two for his spot on the leaderboard.
Daly thinks he might know the key to his success on Thursday. "At the British, I played three practice rounds. Grinding, grinding, grinding," said Daly. "I came here and said I'm just goin

Woods' sliced shot results in spectator needing 2 stitches to head

CARNOUSTIE, Scotland (AP) -- A woman was hit in the head by Tiger Woods' ball when he sliced an approach at the British Open on Saturday. She needed two stitches to close the wound.
Jennifer Wilson, from Antrim, Northern Ireland, was treated by medical staff after being driven away in a golf cart. Woods had earlier apologized and given the 63-year-old an autographed glove.
Wilson was struck just short of the green at the par 5 sixth hole at Carnoustie, where she was standing with her husband... Full Story

Woods, Rose, Lawrie headline British Open pairings

Carnoustie, Scotland (Sports Network) - Two-time defending champion Tiger Woods was paired with Justin Rose and Paul Lawrie for the first two rounds of the 136th British Open Championship, which tees off Thursday at Carnoustie Golf Club.Woods won the last two Open Championships at St. Andrews in 2005 and last year at Royal Liverpool. Lawrie won the last Open played at Carnoustie in 1999.
Rose, playing as an amateur, was the darling of the 1998 British Open at Royal Birkdale, where he shared fourth place behind playoff winner Mark O'Meara.
That threesome will tee off Thursday morning at 9:09 a.m. local time, which is 4:09 a.m. (et). They then tee off Friday at 9:20 a.m. (et)...Full Story

Woods to return at AT&T National

Bethesda, MD (Sports Network) - Tiger Woods announced Thursday that he will return to play in the AT&T National next month, joining Phil Mickelson in the field at his new tournament.
Woods' wife gave birth to the couple's first child, daughter Sam Alexis, last Monday, a day after he missed a 30-foot putt on the last hole of the U.S. Open that would have forced a Monday playoff.
He skipped this week's Buick Open to remain at home with his family. He would have been the defending champion there.
The AT&T National is a new event, to be hosted by Woods from July 5-8 at Congressional Country Club. Proceeds will benefit the Tiger Woods Foundation.
"As host, this tournament is very special to me, and I am grateful the event is receiving tremendous support from the local community, my fellow PGA Tour players and all the members and staff of Congressional Country Club," Woods said in a statement posted on his Web site.
The event filled a hole in the PGA Tour schedule left when the International folded in February under the weight of declining ratings and the lack of a title sponsor.
Woods rarely appeared at the International, another factor in its demise. He is the third player after Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer to host his own tournament.
"It is extremely special to be hosting an event here over July 4th week, and I'm looking forward to a great tournament that raises funds and awareness for the millions of kids my foundation serves," the statement read.
Mickelson, recovering quicker than expected from his left wrist injury, announced his intention to play on Wednesday.