May 19, 2013
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) _ The wind was strong enough to
knock branches from palm trees and keep Tiger Woods without a
birdie on his card for the first time in four years. It really got
blustery when Rory Sabbatini completed a 5-under 67 today to share
the first-round lead with Phil Mickelson at The Players
Championship.
Sabbatini, a pint-sized South African, is not short on
confidence, even after calling out Woods last week and losing to
him.
In a grueling start on the refurbished T-P-C Sawgrass, where
gusts reached 39 miles per hour and made the island green look even
more terrifying, Woods wasn't much of a threat to anyone. He had
only four good looks at birdie, three-putted three times and had to
save par from 90 feet behind the green on his final hole for a
3-over 75, matching his highest score at The Players.
