Peter Lonard flirted with a 59 and finished with a two-stroke lead after Thursday’s opening round of the MCI Heritage in Hilton Head Island, S.C.
The 9-under-par 62 was one shot off the tournament record and brought some life to an event that doesn’t have four-time Masters champion Tiger Woods and his “Big Four’ companions.
Lonard was two strokes ahead of Thomas Levet, who birdied six of his last eight holes to shoot a 64. Darren Clarke was at 65 with Patrick Sheehan another stroke back.
Lonard, a 37-year-old Australian in his fourth season on the PGA Tour, didn’t look capable of a landmark round after opening with a bogey.
But he made 11 birdies over the next 15 holes to take the lead and briefly flirt with golf’s magic number.
He was 10-under after a birdie on No. 16 and put his tee shot on the difficult par-3 17th 15 feet from the pin. A birdie there would have let him go for 59 with a birdie on the famous closing lighthouse hole.
When Lonard walked onto the 17th tee, “I thought I’ve got to birdie the last two holes basically,’ he said. “Up until 17, I didn’t really think about it at all.’
Lonard came a foot short on the tricky downhill putt to make the birdie and failed to join Al Geiberger, Chip Beck and David Duval in the group with the only 59s on the PGA Tour.
The chase over, Lonard ended things with his second bogey on 18.
Still, Lonard’s lowest tour round tied Davis Love III for the best opening-day score at the Heritage. He came a stroke from David Frost’s 11-year-old record of 61 at Harbour Town Golf Links.
Defending champion Stewart Cink, at No. 11 in the world, is the highest ranked player in the field. He fired an even-par 71.
Brandt Jobe, a graduate of Kent Denver High School, was at 2-under 69, a stroke ahead of Denver native Jonathan Kaye.
LPGA: Karrie Webb, a dominant player on the tour a few years ago, showed flashes of her former brilliance on and around the greens in a 7-under 65 that gave her a share of the lead at the Takefuji Classic in Las Vegas with Wendy Ward.
Amateur In-Bee Park, a native of South Korea who is a 16-year-old high school junior in Las Vegas, shot a 66 that left her in a group one shot behind the co-leaders.
Wendy Doolan had consecutive eagles on her way to a 66.
Catriona Matthew and Mi-Hyun Kim also had 66s.
Annika Sorenstam, who has won five consecutive tournaments, is taking the week off.
PGA European Tour: Spaniards Jose Rivero, Santiago Luna and Diego Borrego were among seven players to shoot 2-under 70 and share the first-round lead at the Spanish Open in Sotogrande.
Also in front were Peter Hanson and Peter Gustafsson of Sweden, Emanuele Canonica of Italy and Steven O’Hara of Scotland.
