PARKER — Those incessant gales during the 71st Senior PGA Championship had golfers muttering under their breath and sun-baked spectators holding onto their hats Thursday during an opening round that had everybody at Colorado Golf Club wishing Mother Nature would please just take a nap.
How hard was it blowing? With his back to the wind, co-leader Robin Freeman used a 5-iron on the par-3 sixth hole that was set at 261 yards for the first day. Freeman’s mid-iron shot rode the jet stream before stopping 20 feet past the pin.
And to think Freeman, 51, was fortunate to play in the morning before the gusts really grew angry. A journeyman during his PGA Tour days, Freeman begins the second round today in a tie with two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer at 6-under-par 66, a course record. They have a two-stroke cushion over Brad Bryant and Tom Lehman.
Lehman (68) and Tom Kite (69) were the only afternoon players to break 70. Lehman had third place to himself until bogeying No. 18 after driving into the left rough.
“It was a little gusty,” Lehman said, “(but) I hit it in the middle of the club face all day long.”
Freeman grew up in Oklahoma. He knows wind. But after his round Thursday, he was still shaking his head when asked about all the variables that factor with the wind, the elevation, the disbelief.
“It’s pretty hard to stand back there and say, ‘I’m going to hit this 261, and I’m going to hit a soft 5-iron,’ ” Freeman said. “That just doesn’t compute.”
Shot by shot, players had to constantly calculate, adjust and guess. Including the windy practice rounds, it’s been a grind for seniors accustomed to riding in electric carts in 54-hole events. Three more rounds remain in this senior major championship.
“Everybody’s tired,” said Bryant, 55. “This is a long week for us old guys.”
Gusts reached 35 mph at mid- afternoon, according to the PGA of America’s onsite meteorologist. And by day’s end the leader board featured an eclectic collection of players accustomed to playing in blustery conditions.
Freeman will tell you that the wind never stops in Oklahoma, it merely changes direction. Langer, a German who resides in Florida, honed his game on the seaside links courses while playing the European Tour. Bryant was born in wind-swept Amarillo, Texas, and played college golf at New Mexico.
Those in a tie for fourth at 3-under include Bill Loeffler, an area club pro and course owner (Highlands Ranch Golf Club) who knows all about the uncertainty of springtime in the Rockies; Oklahoma resident Bill Glasson; and tournament favorite Fred Couples.
“The wind’s hard . . . but the course played nice,” said Couples, who played with Langer and Fred Funk as the day’s marquee threesome.
Even with an eagle on No. 14, Langer called his booming 3-iron to within 5 feet of the pin on the 531-yard 12th his best shot of the day. The wind could play havoc with longer carries, but Langer managed to birdie three of the four par-5s.
“I think I’m a pretty decent wind player,” Langer said. “Obviously, you’ve got to flight your ball, and you’ve got to hit the shape (left to right or right to left) that you’re thinking you’re going to hit.”
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
HOLE OF THE DAY
552-yard, par-5 16th.
With its split fairway, No. 16 provided the spark golfers were looking for. The par-5 made good on its eagle watch, with five 3s on the day. Tom Lehman almost made his second shot, which landed on the front left and rolled back and down the slope of the green to within inches of the hole. He tapped in for eagle, and Fred Couples had just a 7-foot putt to card his 3 on the hole. For the day, there also were 45 birdies and five double-bogeys.
David Krause, The Denver Post
BESTS
Placement:
With the wind at their backs on No. 8, a drivable par-4, Chien Soon Lu of Taiwan put his drive about 5 feet from the pin and made the eagle putt. He’s in the hunt at 2-under-par.
Short game:
Part of Bernhard Langer’s first-round 6-under 66 was an eagle on the drivable par-4 14th hole. But Langer, right, played it differently. He hit 3-iron off the tee and left himself with a 104-yard wedge shot, which landed behind the horseshoe green and spun back into the hole.
Putter:
Using a new putter with a fat grip, co-leader Robin Freeman buried birdies of 30, 25, 20, 16, 15 and 12 feet. Freeman called his 66 one of the best putting rounds of his life: “That’s more putts I’ve made over 6 feet in my life in one round, I can guarantee you.” Tom Kensler and David Krause, The Denver Post; Getty Images photo
WORSTS
Tough start:
Despite being raised in windy Oklahoma, Mark Hayes carded one of three 13-over-par 85s. The 1977 Players Championship winner’s first round Thursday featured three double-bogeys (back-to-back on Nos. 11 and 12), nine bogeys, four pars and two birdies.
Weather report:
Expect more of the same windy conditions through Saturday, said Willis Young, the PGA’s onsite meterologist. Gusts hit 35 mph on Thursday. He’s calling for a high of 91 degrees today.
Wildlife sighting:
The sun and warm wind brought out bullsnakes. The nonpoisonous critters were seen in the rough and fairways. David Krause, The Denver Post
