Justin Leonard took advantage of his early tee time, shooting an 8-under 62 Thursday in unusually calm conditions at TPC at Southwind to take a two-stroke lead after the opening round of the St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tenn.
In the fourth group of the morning, Leonard shot his best round since a 61 in the final round at Colonial in 2003, where he finished second.
He birdied his first three holes, six of the opening nine, and finished with eight during his bogey-free round.
Kirk Triplett shot a 64 during the afternoon, with Davis Love III and Jason Bohn another shot back.
Matt Gogel and Tom Pernice each shot 66s, while Olin Browne, Paul Goydos, 2001 champion Bob Estes and Hank Kuehne were another stroke back.
CORNING CLASSIC: At Corning, N.Y., defending champion Annika Sorenstam opened with a 3-under 69, but Sherri Turner and Sophie Gustafson held the first-round lead at 6 under at the Corning Classic.
Turner made an eagle on the par-5 second hole and carded three more birdies before the turn. She finished with her first round in the 60s this year to tie Gustafson, who closed with five birdies over her final seven holes on the way to her best round of the season.
Sorenstam was tied for third with 1986 Corning winner Laurie Rinker, Catherine Cartwright, Jamie Hullett, Mee Lee and Jimin Kang.
SENIOR PGA CHAMPIONSHIP: At Ligonier, Pa., Graham Marsh shot a 4-under 68 to take a one-shot lead after the first round of the Senior PGA Championship.
Hale Irwin, R.W. Eaks, Dave Barr and Tom McKnight are tied for second after 69s.
Raymond Floyd, who hasn't won a tournament in five years, is two shots back with Curtis Strange and Texas club pro Perry Arthur.
BMW CHAMPIONSHIP: At Virginia Water, England, Ireland's Peter Lawrie, Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland and Portugal's Jose-Filipe Lima each shot a 5-under 67 to share the lead after the first round of the BMW Championship.
Ben Curtis, the 2003 British Open champion, was among a group of nine players one shot behind the leaders. Eight more players finished at 3-under 69.