Golf: Classic lead split five ways

LAKE BUENA VISTA - Five players had a share of the lead in the $US3.4 million ($8.27 million) PGA Classic after a windy first round yesterday. Fourteen players were within two shots.

Tiger Woods ended his five-week hiatus with a three-under 69 and is four shots behind, tied for 31st.

Stewart Cink, Scott McCarron, Steve Lowery, Len Mattiace and Shaun Micheel had seven-under 65s.

David Toms, Vijay Singh, of Fiji, and Mike Weir were among seven players to card 66s.

New Zealand's Grant Waite was on 69 and Frank Nobilo on 70.

Duffy Waldorf won last year's classic with a 26-under 262, but Lowery believes that will be tough to match if the wind keeps up.

"If the wind blows, it's going to be somewhere there or not quite as low," he said.

Several players are scrambling to keep tour cards or make the lucrative Tour Championship, including Micheel, who entered the week 145th on the money list. The top 125 retain their playing privileges for next year.

Woods struggled in his first tournament since last month's Canadian Open, finishing his front nine with a double-bogey and his back with a bogey.

Having birdied three of seven holes, he drove into a lateral hazard at the 455-yard 18th, his ninth hole, and ended up missing a 6ft bogey putt.

Woods rebounded with birdies at the first, sixth and seventh, but hooked his drive, pushed his second shot and missed a 15ft par putt at the ninth.

Carl Paulson became the 35th player this year to have two eagles in one round en route to a 66.

* New Zealand pair Tim Wilkinson and Eddie Lee were one shot off the lead in a solid start to the Hong Kong amateur championships.

Wilkinson, of Palmerston North, and Lee, of Christchurch, both shot opening rounds of three-under 69 to sit second equal with three other players.

Their combined score had New Zealand first-equal with Malaysia in the teams event.

The third New Zealand player, Rotorua's Sam Hunt, shot an opening round of 74.

- AGENCIES