Colin
Montgomerie moved closer to his seventh successive European number one title when
he shot a one-under-par 70 in the first round of the $5 million Valderrama
World Golf Championship on Thursday.
The Scot's sub-par round contrasted with scores of 73 for Englishman Lee Westwood,
74 for Spaniard Sergio Garcia and 75 for Retief Goosen of South Africa, any one
of whom could still stop Montgomerie extending his European reign by winning this
title.
However, they now
face an uphill task after Vijay Singh of Fiji took the first-round lead in the
last of the three world championship events with a four-under-par 67.
He is trailed by U.S. Ryder Cup player Jim Furyk on 68 and a quintet on 69 comprising
European Ryder Cup captain Mark James, Nick Price of Zimbabwe and Americans Phil
Mickelson, Bob Estes and Scott Hoch.
World number one Tiger Woods was back in a tie for 12th spot after two late birdies
gave him a level-par 71 on the demanding 6,830-yard course where he struggled
with his form in the 1997 Ryder Cup.
Montgomerie, who led his rivals on Europe's money-winning list by 410,000 pounds
($673,200) going into this tournament, won the 1993 Volvo Masters at Valderrama
to ensure his first Order of Merit crown.
The Scot, who loves the course and played it well in a blustery wind, said: "I
am very much switched on here. I enjoy the challenge of it."
He birdied the second and fourth holes but bogeyed the fifth and the spectacular
10th. Another birdie at 13 put him under par again but he three-putted the 16th.
The 17th, a 536-yard par
five with a lake in front of the green, is a hole he still dislikes even though
it has been redesigned more than once.
'NOTHING WENT RIGHT'
"I hit
a four-iron second 220 yards to the front of the green and just made it," he said.
Then he two-putted for birdie and parred the last.
"To
get out in one under was okay and we can build from that," Montgomerie added.
Garcia, closest to Montgomerie
on the money list, said: "It was one of those rounds when nothing went right."
Westwood was bettering Montgomerie
until he found the water at the 17th and took a double-bogey seven. Then he bogeyed
the last.
Goosen had two
double bogeys on his card, at the par-four second and the 547-yard uphill par-five
11th.
Singh bogeyed the first
hole then birdied the second, fourth and fifth. He dropped a shot at the sixth,
then collected three more birdies on the back nine.
Woods, who won the second world championship event, the NEC Invitational in Ohio
in August, said the blustery conditions made things "a little difficult".
"I hit the ball pretty well but I didn't
make many putts. On this golf course you have to be patient. It is very important
to hit the fairway," said Woods, who used his driver on only five tees.
His two late birdies came on a 182-yard eight iron to four feet at the 16th and
a 20-foot birdie at the 17th. His eagle at the 535-yard fourth resulted from a
downwind 236-yard five iron to the green, 12 feet behind the hole, his best shot
of the day.
