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Hideki Matsuyama, Bo Van Pelt share first-round lead at the Memorial

Hideki Matsuyama watches his tee shot at No. 17 during the first round of the Memorial on Thursday in Dublin, Ohio.

Hideki Matsuyama watches his tee shot at No. 17 during the first round of the Memorial on Thursday in Dublin, Ohio.

(Andy Lyons / Getty Images)
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Defending champion Hideki Matsuyama ran off four straight birdies on the back nine for an eight-under-par 64 and shared the lead at the Memorial in Dublin, Ohio, on Thursday with rejuvenated Bo Van Pelt.

Matsuyama was surprised to make so many birdies. He said he was driving, chipping and putting poorly going into the first round.

“To be honest with you, up until yesterday I was not hitting the ball very well, I was not chipping very well, I was not putting very well,” Matsuyama said through a translator. “And I don’t know what happened overnight. We just caught magic.”

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Tiger Woods was surprised for other reasons. He felt he was hitting the ball well on Wednesday. When the tournament started, he was all over Muirfield Village. Only a scrambling finish -- bogey-free for a 33 on the front nine -- kept it from being worse. Woods had a 73 and was nine shots behind.

Jason Dufner made double bogey on the 18th hole and joined Russell Knox at 66.

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Rookie Cheyenne Woods tied a course record with a nine-under 63 as she took the early lead at the Manulife LPGA Classic in CAmbridge, Canada, on Thursday.

The niece of PGA star Tiger Woods shares the record at Whistle Bear Golf Club with Matt Bettencourt and Jon Mills, who both shot 63 at the Canadian PGA Championship in 2005.

Woods birdied eight holes — including five of the last nine — and had an eagle and one bogey.

Laetitia Beck of Israel and Germany’s Sandra Gal were tied at eight-under 64.

South Korea’s Sei Young Kim and Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist were another stroke back at seven-under 65.

Five players were tied at six-under par 66, including past tournament champion Brittany Lang. Natalie Gleadall of Stratford, Ontario, was the top early Canadian finisher at four-under par 68. She was one of two players that advanced to the Manulife Classic from the Monday qualifier.

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Swedish amateur Marcus Kinhult was in a three-way tie for the lead after the opening day of the Nordea Masters in Malmo, Sweden, after shooting five-under-par 67.

Countryman Jens Dantorp and England’s Chris Paisley were with him, one stroke ahead of nine golfers on four under.

The 18-year-old Kinhult sank five birdies on the back nine.

“I just want to keep on playing and hope I’ll be able to accelerate. It’s just the first of four rounds,” he told Swedish news agency TT.

Paisley bogeyed his second hole but hit six birdies at PGA Sweden National. World No. 4 Henrik Stenson came in at two under, while defending champion Thongchai Jaidee scored a one-over 73.

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