St. Jude Classic report

MEMPHIS — Westwood starts fast, shoots 63.

Englishman Lee Westwood was hot from the start Thursday, shooting a 6-under-par 29 on the back nine, his first holes of thetournament.

It helped Westwood to a 7-under 63 and the first-round lead at the St. Jude Classic at TPC Southwind in Memphis.

Westwood’s 29 on the back nine equals the TPC Southwind course record held by Gene Sauers (1995), Gil Morgan (1996), Clarence Rose (1999), Boo Weekley (2002) and Tom Pernice Jr.

(2004).

“Twenty-nine, that was a pretty good start,” Westwood said.

His 63 tied his best round on the PGA Tour.

Previously, Westwood shot 63 during the 2005 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational.

It’s not bad considering this is Westwood’s first visit to Memphis.

“You try and score when you get your morning timeon the first two days when it’s fairly calm,” Westwood said. “So that’s what I tried to do. The wind didn’t pick up. You just try and make the most of it while it’s not blowing. You got better greens obviously in the morning.”

Westwood received a sponsor’s exemption to the tournament after initially being turned down. His primary sponsor is package deliverer UPS, a rival of Memphis-based Fed Ex.

One bad hole

One hole redefined what would have been a good start for Dardanelle’s John Daly (Arkansas Razorbacks) in the first round. Daly triple-bogeyed the second hole en route to a 1-over-par 71.

Daly started on the back nine and shot even par despite a bogey on the 18th hole. He birdied the first, triple bogeyed the second and birdied the third to get to 1 over. He finished with six consecutive pars. That included the ninth hole after hitting his approach shot to about 6 feet. But the birdie putt slid by the right side of the cup.

“It was a good day, a great day for scoring,” said Daly, who played in the afternoon on a day when most of the tournament’s best scores came from those playing in the morning. “It was just one bad hole for me. I mean the greens are so perfect, if you feel any confidence in the putting, that’s why thePair of aces

There was a span of nearly six years between holes-in-one at the St. Jude Classic.

Billy Mayfair ended that drought during Thursday’s first round. Then it was a matter of hours before the next one was made by Will MacKenzie.

Mayfair and MacKenzie both aced the 178-yard eighth hole, and both did it using a 7-iron. The most recent ace in the tournament occurred during the third round in 2004 when Michael Allen used a 6-iron on the 196-yard fourth hole.

Tricky placements

Dardanelle’s John Daly has played TPC Southwind numerous times, but hesaw some pin placements Thursday that he’d never seen before.

“Four, I’ve got to admit, was a little suspect. It was kind of a little leaning hole there. I hit a decent 6-iron and had a 25-footer, and I’m hoping not to three-putt it,” said Daly, who made par on the hole. “There was some you could get to and some you had to play a little conservative with.”

Good first round

Memphis native Casey Wittenberg got off to a good start Thursday with a 6-under-par 64. Not bad for a buy making his first appearance on the PGA Tour this season. He’s been playing primarily Nationwide Tour events.

“I think it’s maybe a little bit different for me this year,” Wittenberg said. “Last two years I qualified for the U.S.. Open coming into this week and, unfortunately, I didn’t qualify on Monday. So I think I’m a little bit more relaxed. I’m not so worried about what’s going happen next week.”

The U.S. Open will be next week at Pebble Beach, Calif.

Withdrawals

Robert Allenby and David Gossett withdrew during Thursday’s first round after nine holes.

Allenby was sick, while Gossett had a hamstring injury. Jerod Turner withdrew before play began.