Sutherland leads with opening 66

Kevin Sutherland stepped outside and took a deep breath, soaking in the bright sunshine and calm skies.

"Sure doesn't seem like we're at Pebble Beach, does it?" he asked.

Not only was the Northern California native on top of his game Thursday, he was at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am on one of the most unexpectedly gorgeous days in the famed tournament's recent history.

Sutherland shot a 6-under 66 Thursday for a one-stroke lead over Mike Weir and Robert Gamez.

Golfers expect weather trouble on the Monterey Peninsula, so the perfect conditions were both a treat and a challenge. Sutherland and a few others managed the fast fairways and hard greens resulting from the absence of recent rain at the tournament's three spectacular courses.

"I've never seen the course as hard and as fast as this," said Sutherland, who had five birdies on the front nine at Pebble Beach Golf Links. "The fairways are really hard. The balls are going a tremendous distance. I'm in places I've never been before."

Sutherland was born, raised and trained a short drive away in California's central valley, from his childhood in Sacramento to his college days at Fresno State. Since he first tried Pebble Beach in the high school state championship, he estimates he has played here 70 times.

A lot of good it did him in these kind of conditions.

"This is going to throw a lot of people for a loop, but these courses are challenging enough," Sutherland said.

Though Bill Murray led another bumper crop of entertaining amateurs, the professional field at the popular pro-am is less star-studded than usual. Tiger Woods skipped the tournament for the first time since 1995, and just seven of the world's top 25 players are in the field.

Weir, the winner of last week's Bob Hope Classic, shot a steady 67 on Spyglass Hill, generally considered the toughest of the three Monterey Peninsula courses. Playing with fellow Canadian Wayne Gretzky, Weir capped a bogey-free round with consecutive birdies on the final two holes.

"I closed it out great," Weir said. "You just have to be patient. You get mud on the ball, you can't be aggressive. You have to be smart and not go for the pins."

Gamez, who started on No. 10 at Poppy Hills, had a tumultuous back nine. After a birdie on 15 and a bogey on 16, he aced the 163-yard 17th - the first hole in one of his PGA career - and eagled the 500-yard 18th.

Gamez's ace was a seven-iron that rolled in from 5 feet.

"I don't think I've ever had back-to-back eagles before - especially with a (par)-3 and a -5," Gamez said.

He managed to maintain his focus despite a six-hour round with long stretches of waiting - something that's typical at the crowded pro-am.

"Poppy Hills plays the easiest, but the greens can be tricky here," Gamez said. "The slopes here can be very rough on a player's game - especially right now, because everything is so dry and firm. Most of the golfers had been saying that: the greens and fairways are firm, and the ball just rolls."

Tom Lehman led nine golfers at 4 under, while Fred Couples and 2002 runner-up Pat Perez were among the eight players three strokes back.

Sutherland earned his first PGA Tour victory last February, beating fellow Sacramento native Scott McCarron in the finals of the match-play World Golf Championship in Carlsbad, Calif.

Thursday's first round was his 12th straight this season at par or better - further evidence his 2002 slump following the match play victory is nearly over. Still, Pebble Beach kept him humble, particularly on the short putt he missed from above the 15th hole.

"I've had that putt a lot on this course, and I still missed it," Sutherland said. "Everything is a little different this week."

While the pros worked, the celebrities enjoyed the gorgeous weather and interacted with the crowd, adding to the lighthearted feel of the event. Oscar De La Hoya signed boxing gloves in the gallery, even donning a set for a brief rope-a-dope with fans.

New England quarterback Tom Brady and former NFL star Dan Marino played in a foursome with Jesper Parnevik and Couples.

The size of the crowds didn't appear to be affected by the absence of Woods, who announced Thursday he will return to the tour in San Diego next week after taking two months off to recover from knee surgery.

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