The first round of the 2011 PGA Championship has been dominated by Tiger Woods’ struggles, but Steve Stricker’s dominant performance at the Atlanta Athletic Club course may be the story of the day.
PGA Championship Leaderboard: Steve Stricker Takes Clubhouse Lead After Record-Tying First Round
Stricker fired a 7-under par 63, the best round of the day so far, and holds a two-shot lead over Jerry Kelly, still on the course, and a five-shot clubhouse lead over four golfers, including Woods’ playing partner, Davis Love III.
Stricker’s round was flawless: he threw in seven birdies to no bogeys, and began with birdies on his first three holes after teeing off at the 10th. Stricker finished the back nine at 5-under, then added two birdies on the front nine to get to 7-under for the tournament.
Stricker’s never finished better than second in the PGA Championship — he was the runner-up in 1998 — and has only one other top-10 finish, a tie for seventh in 2006. But after his 63, which ties the major championship and PGA Championship single round scoring records (in terms of score, not relation to par), he’s well-positioned to do much more this weekend.
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