| Milwaukee,
Wisconsin,. 3rd September 1998
- With a brace around his lower back, some adjustments in his swing and a blistering
28 on the front nine, Loren Roberts held a three-shot lead after the opening round
of the Greater Milwaukee Open today. He
also landed in the record books, tying the tournament record for Brown Deer Park
Golf Course of 9-under par 62 set in 1996 by Nolan Henke. "I
was perfect for nine holes and then I hit every green. I just really had a birdie
putt on every single hole," Roberts said after playing under bright blue
skies and conditions so calm that the cackle of a flight of Canadian geese occasionally
echoed across the fairways. "I
feel comfortable here," he said. "The golf course fits my game. ...
You don't have to stand up there and rip it on every hole. You can kind of play
position." Roberts,
43, won the tournament in 1996 and was second last year and in 1994, the year
play moved to Brown Deer from Tuckaway Country Club. Jay
Don Blake was in second Thursday with 6-under-par 65. "It
helped to start with four birdies. I helps your confidence," Blake said.
"I enjoyed watching the board." Among
those at 5-under par were Mark Calcavecchia, searching for his first Milwaukee
victory in his 18th appearance. PGA
champion Vijay Singh, who played in the threesome with Roberts, was among a crowded
field of finishers at 67. Steve
Stricker, the homestate favorite from nearby Madison, shot a 68, three days after
his first child, daughter Bobbie Jean, was born. With
little sleep because of what he called the "miracle" and excitement
of fatherhood, Stricker, 31, said he was "in a fog for awhile" Thursday,
"even found myself yawning" and had to talk to himself to remind him
he was playing in a golf tournament. He
didn't arrive at Brown Deer until about two hours before teeing off and has practiced
little on some new things he wanted to try, he said. "I
feel like I kind of crammed for a test and really have not prepared all that well,"
Stricker said. "But I didn't really have to worry about how I was playing
because of what has happened the last few days." Defending
champ Scott Hoch shot a 70. Roberts
was atop the leaderboard all day, finishing the front nine at 7-under, which included
five birdies and an eagle at No. 4 after hitting a 4-wood shot 3-1/2 feet from
the cup. Roberts,
ranked 70th on the PGA money list with $348,108, said he last shot a 28 in New
Zealand in 1978 while playing on the Australian Tour. For
a time, Roberts thought 59 was possible, but he missed an 8-footer for birdie
at 16 and pitched 20 feet above the hole at 18 from "no man's land"
about 18 yards in front of the green. Roberts barely missed the downhill birdie
putt coming back. "My
goal was to at least get 10-under par," he said. At
the 16th hole, Roberts' caddie scolded some people with cameras as Roberts lined
up his putt, but Roberts refused to make excuses for what he called a poor putt.
"Hey, world-class
players don't let that kind of thing bother them. If I want to be one of those,
I have to forget about it," he said. Roberts'
stellar play came despite wearing a back brace and getting daily treatments for
the soreness, he said. "I
haven't been playing that good since I came back in the end of May. I made a huge
adjustment in my golf swing last week and it kind of paid off in my play my last
three rounds," he said. "I just feel good about making a couple of particular
changes that seem to be working." | 
