Real Ace, Fluky One Steal the Show

Tiger Woods gave the huge crowds what they wanted--a spot near the top of the leaderboard in the first round of the Phoenix Open. Andrew Magee gave them something unexpected, and ended up with a spot in PGA Tour history.

On a day when Magee made what was believed to be the first hole in one on a par four on the PGA Tour, Woods shot a methodical six-under-par 65 Thursday at Scottsdale, Ariz., to get within one shot of defending champion Tom Lehman and two others.

Not even an orange thrown from the gallery that went rolling by Woods as he stood over a birdie putt on his final hole could mar a bogey-free round, his Tour-record 52nd consecutive round of par or better.

“It could have been better, but I had a couple of lip-outs,” Woods said. “I was playing well in practice, so it was just a question of bringing it into the tournament.”

Woods was about to attempt a 20-foot birdie putt on the ninth hole, his last, when a spectator threw an orange that went rolling across the green about 30 feet from Woods. He stepped back and looked into the crowd, then missed the putt.

“It could have been dangerous if he had hit someone,” Woods said. Police detained the spectator who threw the orange and tournament officials said they planned to press charges.

The incident came on an otherwise calm day that drew an estimated 72,000 fans to one of the tour’s most popular--and raucous--stops.

Second-year pro Brad Elder set the early pace with a 64, which stood up for most of the day until Lehman and Scott Verplank posted identical scores. Woods was tied with five others at 65 on a day when smooth greens and perfect weather combined for ideal scoring conditions.

Magee’s shot was a bit of a fluke, ricocheting off Tom Byrum’s putter into the cup on the 333-yard 17th hole. Tour officials said they couldn’t recall a hole in one being made on a par four in tournament play.

Magee watched as the ball glanced off the putter about eight feet away into the hole, but wasn’t sure what had happened.

“It looked like a hole in one and it sounded like one,” Magee said. “But I didn’t know. I was 332 yards away.”

Magee, who finished with a 66 that put him two shots off the lead, had hit his drive in the water two holes earlier and made double bogey.

“I’m still in shock,” he said. “I’m going to bask in the glow of this for a while.”

Lehman, who lives nearby and won here last year, played the back nine first and struggled early before a talk with himself over his putting got him going.

Lehman shot 30 on his back nine, finishing with a 25-footer for birdie to move into a tie for the lead.

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Jackie Gallagher-Smith and Wendy Ward shot four-under 66s in windy conditions to share the first-round lead in the Office Depot tournament.

Two-time defending champion Karrie Webb opened with a 69. The Australian star played in the morning when the temperature was in the 50s at the Doral Golf Resort and Spa in Miami.

“I’ll take anything under par in those conditions,” said Webb, coming off a second-place finish last week in Naples, Fla. “Being cold as well, and not hitting the ball very far. You’ve got a lot of clothes on. I’m glad to start the tournament on a good foot.”

Ward and Gallagher-Smith, sister of PGA Tour members Jim and Jeff Gallagher, played in the afternoon when it warmed up to 69 degrees. But they also faced 20 mph wind.

“You have to be focused off the tees,” said Gallagher-Smith, who won the 1999 Giant Eagle Classic for her lone tour title. “You have to focus on where you want to hit it and not where you don’t want to hit it.”

Laura Diaz, Sweden’s Helen Alfredsson and Nancy Scranton were tied at three under. Diaz and Alfredsson shot 67s on Doral’s 5,842-yard Red Course. Gallagher-Smith, Ward and Webb also played the Red Course.

Scranton had a 69 on Doral’s 6,388-yard, par-72 Blue Course. Pearl Sinn was two under and Grace Park, Barb Mucha and Emilee Klein were one under on the Blue Monster.