LEMONT, Ill. — Already having his best season, Matt Kuchar got off to his best start of the year Thursday in the BMW Championship. A mystery season for Tiger Woods took another unexpected turn.
Kuchar, who won the opening FedEx Cup playoff event to position himself for the $10 million bonus, finished with an 18-foot birdie putt for a 7-under-par 64 and a one-shot lead over Ryan Moore.
Ian Poulter had a 66 for the best round of the afternoon despite opening with a double bogey. Woods also started with a double bogey, but he never got those shots back.
With one last bogey on the 18th hole, Woods finished with a 73 to leave himself in a big hole as he tries to advance to the final stage of the playoffs in Atlanta. It was his highest round at Cog Hill since he opened with a 73 in the 2005 Western Open.
It was peculiar to hear him discuss how much ground he has to make up — not against Kuchar, but the finish he needs to get into the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings and advance to the Tour Championship.
“As of right now, I’m only five shots back out of that spot,” Woods said. “That’s not bad.”
• Nicolas Colsearts shot an 8-under 62 for a two-stroke lead over Kenneth Ferrie and Shiv Kapur after the first round of the Dutch Open in Hilversum, Netherlands.
Mayweather wanted by police
LAS VEGAS — Police sought boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. for questioning about a domestic battery report filed by an ex-girlfriend who recanted a similar claim in 2005, police and his lawyer said.
“She alleges he hit her. We’re looking for him to get his side of the story,” officer Barbara Morgan said. “We’re looking to talk to him as a potential suspect.”
No warrant was issued, and no charges were immediately filed.
NCAA investigating Tennessee
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee basketball coach Bruce Pearl and an assistant have been contacted by the NCAA about possible recruiting violations.
The NCAA is looking into possible excessive contact with recruits and also has talked with Vols associate head coach Tony Jones.
• The University of Dayton will host all four first-round games of the newly expanded men’s basketball tournament next March. Two games will match the tournament’s lowest seeds, Nos. 65 through 68, with the winners advancing as No. 16 seeds.
Footnotes.
Former Edmonton Oilers captain Jason Smith faces charges of domestic assault against his wife and daughter and confinement of his wife.
• Briton Mark Cavendish won the 107.2-mile 12th stage of the Spanish Vuelta, while Igor Anton of Spain retained the overall lead.
• The IndyCar Series ended its six-year run at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International.
• Miami baseball player Frank Ratcliff was arrested and charged with trying to sell marijuana to undercover officers on university grounds, and police later found 19 vials of human growth hormone at his apartment. He also was charged with possession of a controlled substance.
The Associated Press
