['Hamas' Jenkins]

Few thoughts:

I am surprised that a soft course was that resistant scoring, but it looks like the players later in the day have put up better scores. What was interesting is that the greens were incredibly receptive and putted true but not lightning fast, and yet the players couldn’t throw them close enough early to go on a run. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Mickelson’s score stand up, because Donald and Scott started on the easy nine. You get this course on 1-13 and try to survive on 14-18.

Mickelson has always been a player who plays well in 5-6 hole stretches. If he’s on, he can play the other 12 holes somewhere around even. Today he was playing rather “blah” golf with the exception that his 3-wood stayed in the fairway and he made several par saves. That said, he didn’t putt out of his mind (29 overall). It was more of a Jim Furyk round with an occasional bouts of Phil insanity, like the saves on 5 and 6. That said, it wouldn’t surprise me to see him struggle tomorrow, as exhausting nights usually affect you the day after rather than the night of.

I have no idea how Tiger will end up. I think he was lucky that his round ended when it did, which will allow him to iron out kinds before he meets the teeth of the course. He could play the last seven -1 or +3, but I’d expect the former. Who knows if his wrist is really bothering him. Either way he'll make it seem like it isn't.

Now, on to a gripe:

There was a ruling on the third hole today where Steve Stricker hit a ball in the sand of a bunker right underneath the low hanging limbs of an evergreen tree. He called in multiple rules officials before one gave him an idiotic ruling that he was not in the bunker. This allowed him to take an unplayable lieand drop outside of the bunker, whereas if he was ruled in the bunker he would not have been allowed a drop. It saved him multiple shots, and it’s the kind of bullshit that makes me hate tournament golf, as the pros appeal more than death row inmates until they finally find an ignorant jackass willing to kowtow to their wishes.