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Tiger Woods and Padraig Harrington stamped their authority on world golf at Hazeltine National yesterday and, side-by-side, they marched straight to the top of the early leaderboard at the US PGA.
Woods gave a truly masterful display as he broke 70 in the opening round of a Major Championship for the first time since the 2007 British Open at Carnoustie.
A bogey-free 67 put Tiger just one ahead of Harrington in the clubhouse. The Dubliner opened his defence of the Wanamaker Trophy with a satisfying 68 which helped him leave the dismal first eight months of this season even further behind.
What a difference four days makes. After the intensity of their final round battle at Firestone last Sunday, when Woods and Harrington played in stoic silence, they and 2002 champion Rich Beem chatted away yesterday like old cronies out for a friendly Sunday morning threeball.
Not everyone was willing to let Harrington forget his treble-bogey debacle on Firestone's 16th hole. When the Dubliner played a deft little chip from tangled greenside rough to three feet for par at the long 11th hole, his second, one wag in the crowd blurted: “that's what ya needed last Sunday, Padraig.”
Harrington didn't hear. He was too busy chuckling after a monster second shot from Alvaro Quiros had landed on the front of the green at this 606 yard par five as they were putting out.
Into the wind yesterday, even Woods took three strokes to reach the putting surface. However, the young Spaniard is a monster hitter and propelled his ball 290-plus yards off the deck with his driver to that green.
Much to his embarrassment, it must be said. Quiros immediately made a detour to the 12th tee to apologise to the distinguished trio in front.
“Alvaro, I mean seriously,” said Woods, laughing. “I told him he had nothing to apologise for. That was a hell of a shot. It was just stupid line. I remember when I was that long but now I just plot my way around to 67.
“I honestly thought there couldn’t be anyone in the game today who could hit it up there in two,” said Harrington.
“It was absolutely astonishing. We were talking about it among ourselves on the green and joking that we'd obviously kept some distance in our golf bags.”
A capacity crowd of 50,000 flocked to Hazeltine National yesterday, underlining Minnesota's reputation as one of America's greatest hotbeds and the atmosphere was electric at the 10th tee yesterday as Woods, then Harrington and, finally, Beem reported for duty in the feature group.
Harrington had the honour and received quite a rousing cheer but if golf tournaments were decided on the ‘Clapometer', the roar which greeted Tiger would have lifted him straight to the top of the leaderboard.
The Irishman signalled his intent right from the off.
After driving into the heart of the fairway, his downhill approach from the crest of the hill drew in towards the pin on the left of this picturesque lakeside green and precariously close to the bull rushes.
Yet risk did not receive its due reward and Harrington two-putted from 12 feet to match Tiger's safe par, while Beem took three from the front apron for bogey.
Harrington didn't play 11 particularly well, knocking his second into rough to the left of the fairway and missing the green right before that tidy up-and-down but he and Tiger would underscore their status as leading contenders this week with gilt-edged birdies at the gruelling par four 12th.
The tee was moved up 17 yards yesterday in deference to the wind but 12 still played 501 yards and offered a fascinating insight into how the longest course in Major Championship history demands different strokes from different folks.
Not one of the longer players in professional golf, Beem hit driver followed by a careful shot with a three-wood and still came up just short of the green. He got up and down for par.
Meanwhile, Woods and Harrington, who both hit three-irons onto the short grass, both holed out for birdie, Tiger from 20-plus feet and the Dubliner from eight feet.
Woods picked up his second birdie of the day at the long 15th, where Harrington made par after knocking his escape from a greenside bunker close to the back fringe. Yet he'd draw level with Tiger at the picture-postcard 16th hole after hitting a superlative eight-iron to eight feet.
Beem suddenly shook himself alive by the lakeshore, reviving memories of his meteoric PGA Championship in at Hazeltine with the first of an impressive hat-trick of birdies to the turn.
Harrington dropped his only shot of the day out of another greenside trap at the first hole and, after picking up three more birdies on his way to the finish, the Dubliner headed straight for the short game area to practice on his bunker play.
Delighted to be within one stroke of Woods in the clubhouse after a relatively laid-back day on the golf course, Harrington said: “I was able to watch a few of Tiger's shots and swings today and his game has changed.
“Obviously, years ago he had more flair in his game and a lot more flamboyance but it's very solid now. I think he's put a little more conservatism in there and it's nice. He's very much in control of his game.
“Last Sunday was so intense, I never once looked at him, I was so immersed in my own game but this is only Thursday. Sunday's business day but this is a totally different atmosphere. It's all about getting into the tournament, though you'd still not want to let him get too far away.
“I don't think I'd like to be giving him a three stroke lead going into Sunday.”
Ulster aces Graeme McDowell (70) and Rory McIlroy (71) were both delighted to leave recent poor form behind them yesterday and click straight into top gear on yesterday's return to the Major Championship stage.
After several days intensive work over the last fortnight to try and clear up an annoying swing glitch, McDowell suddenly felt it all fall into place on the range yesterday morning and the result was a bogey free round in which he hit 16 of 18 greens and landed two birdies.
McIlroy, meanwhile, had been so frustrated with his game in a practice round on Tuesday, he worked until late on the range and played only nine holes on the eve of the tournament before heading for the nearby Mall of America and a laid-back afternoon with girlfriend Holly.
“The rest seemed to help me get my rhythm again,” confirmed McIlroy, who ripped into action with three birdies in his opening six holes (on the back nine here), before driving into the hazard at 16 and three-putting the first for his two bogeys.
“I gave myself a lot of chances and if 71 probably was the worst I could have scored, I still feel very good about the way I played.”
