Watney leads season opener in Hawaii
IN: News | US PGA | Mercedes-Benz Championship (2008) | Round One | by Bruce Young | 04 Jan 2008
Nick Watney, a debutante at the Merecedes-Benz Championship this week, leads at the end of day one after his round of five under par 68 on the par 73 layout left him one ahead of Swede Daniel Chopra.
In squally, demanding, conditions only ten of the 31 player field are under par at the completion of the first 18 holes.
“In the off-season I took it pretty easy,” said Watney who won the 2007 Zurich Classic of New Orleans to gain a start in the field.
“I think I’m the type that does well with some time off, so I definitely did that. And then my game, you know, I worked decently hard with Butch in December and got a few things squared away and really tried to work on my putting and short game. I did that well today, so hopefully it keeps paying off.”
26-year-old Watney is into his third season on the USPGA Tour after a season on the Nationwide Tour in 2004 and an amateur career that saw him as the leading collegiate player in the US.
Three players including Aaron Baddeley, Angel Cabrera and Jonathan Byrd are tied for third after three under par rounds of 70.
“It played long, just with the rain and not getting any run out there like the course usually plays,” said Australian Baddeley.
“It was a tough day, just windy and rainy. It wasn’t a fun day.”
“I’m really excited about the new deal and excited about the equipment. It hasn’t been much of an adjustment, so it’s been great,” said Baddeley when asked about his switch to Adams Golf in the off season.
Pre-tournament favourites, Jim Furyk and Vijay Singh are at one over par 74 but are still well in the game with three rounds yet to be played.
