Lowery & Williamson lead crowded leaderboard

Justin Leonard's ball moved slightly when he grounded his putter on the 13th green, costing him a penalty stroke and a share of the lead. He flung his putter against his bag in disgust as the apparent birdie turned into a par.

Steve Lowery nearly lost his ball amid the leaves and briars at the 6th, then landed in the woods again at the 8th, probably costing him a good shot at the course record.

Jay Williamson did set a record, shooting a 29 on the back nine as he attempts to exorcise the demons from his embarrassing Sunday collapse four years ago.

When today's first round of the Kemper Insurance Open was over, Williamson and Lowery were tied for the lead at 7-under-par 64. Leonard, Greg Chalmers, Brett Quigley and Craig Barlow were all a stroke back as the tournament upheld its legacy of a leaderboard crowded with players seeking a first PGA Tour victory.

``I am becoming a veteran of Q-school, and I don't want to be known as a guy who has to go there every year,'' said Williamson, who could have been speaking on behalf of all the low-ranked, non-winners who routinely have to play the year-end qualifying tournament to stay on the tour.

Williamson put together an eagle-birdie-birdie-birdie stretch from holes 13 through 16 to reach 6 under. He matched the nine-hole record set by Brad Bryant in 1991, although Bryant did it on the more difficult, par-36 front nine.

``Glad I didn't know,'' said Williamson, when told about the record. ``I'm an emotional player.''

The TPC at Avenel course is full of haunting memories for Williamson - or ``demons'' as he calls them. He was a wide-eyed, second-year player on the tour when he led this tournament after three rounds in 1996. Then he lost his nerve on Sunday and shot a 79, and it's still the closest he's come to a PGA Tour victory.

``I don't think I was really good enough to handle the pressure of whatever a Sunday round brings when you're in the lead,'' said Williamson, who has already missed seven of 15 cuts this year. ``And I really believe this year, I'm looking forward to the opportunity. ... I think I'm more mature. I'm definitely a better player.''

Williamson eagled the par-5 13th even though his drive landed in a small divot. He hit a 5-iron to the green and sank the putt from 40 feet. He had a chance to tie the 18-hole course record of 63, but he missed a 12-footer at the 18th.

Leonard was 5 under at the turn, but missed from 5 feet at the 10th and from 6 feet at the 15th. His only birdie on the back nine came he missed both the fairway and the green on the par-4 16th. His tee shot was in the rough beyond a sand trap, and his approached landed in the collection area behind the green. He chipped in from 40 feet.

But Leonard's most frustrating moment came as he grounded his putter before a 2-foot putt for birdie at No. 13. He looked at the hole, then looked back at his putter and realized the ball had rolled back slightly and was resting against his club.

Leonard, playing solid for the second straight week after struggling most of the year, called the penalty on himself and made the putt for par, gritting his teeth as he flung his putter and called out ``5'' to the scorer.

``It's something that seems to happen to me twice a year,'' Leonard said. ``And it always seems to happen in a good round.''

Lowery's round was even more touch-and-go. At 7 under through 14 holes, he clipped a tree going for the green on his second shot at the par-5 sixth. It took several minutes and about a dozen people to find his buried ball - two other long-lost balls were found during the search.

The ball was ruled ``embedded,'' allowing Lowery a drop in the woods. He chipped to the green and saved par.

``I was lucky somebody over there found it,'' Lowery said. ``I actually had a chance to make birdie, but at the time it was looking like bogeying.''

Lowery also landed in the woods at the 8th and in the sand trap at the 9th. Both times he saved par.

Because of an early tee time and a malfunctioning scoreboard, Lowery attracted a gallery of just eight people as he strode a fairway near the end of his round. It was quite a contrast from Monday, when Lowery was paired with Tiger Woods in the final round of the rain-delayed Memorial.

``There were a lot of distractions Monday, but today I felt, you know, a lot freer,'' said Lowery, who tied for fifth as Woods won easily. ``It was a lot easier to play today.''

Williamson, Chalmers, Quigley and Barlow are seeking to become the ninth first-time tour winner at the Kemper. Rich Beem, last year's first-time winner, shot a 70 on a beautiful day in which 70 of 156 golfers shot even par of better.

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