The final opening-round Thursday of the 2012 PGA Tour season is behind us. If the rest of the weekend holds up to what Thursday offered, viewers are in for a treat. Great golf was on display as over half of the 30 players that made the field for the Tour Championship at East Lake shot under par.
Tiger Woods and Justin Rose are tied atop the leaderboard at -4. Matt Kuchar, Scott Piercy, Bo Van Pelt, Steve Stricker and Hunter Mahan are all one stroke back. Other notables are Bubba Watson, Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson all at -1, Rickie Fowler at +1 and Ernie Els and Lee Westwood both sit at +2.
The story of the day was whether Woods would be “intimated” by McIlroy, as the two were paired together. That answer was no. For McIlroy, it doesn’t get any easier as Friday he is paired with two-time Tour Championship winner Phil Mickelson. Rose had the shots of the day and brought the crowd to life on several occasions, including his final shot of the day when he drained a long birdie attempt on the par-3 18.
For the first time in the history of the Tour Championship dating back to 1987, all 30 participants have a chance to hold the FedEx Cup and snag the $8,000,000 purse. The top 5 (McIlroy, Woods, Mickelson, Nick Watney and Brant Snedeker) can all win it on their own with a victory here at East Lake while the other 25 need some things to fall in place for them to win.
If fans are looking for a Cinderella story, Scott Piercy was the last to make the cut, and he entered the Tour Championship at No. 30 in the overall standings. He made the most of his opportunity, posting a 67 to sit just one shot back of Woods and Rose.
Notable Friday Pairings:
11:55: Ernie Els and Lee Westwood
12:45: Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson
1:05: Bubba Watson and Jim Furyk
1:45: Matt Kuchar and Steve Stricker
2:05: Justin Rose and Tiger Woods
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