SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — U.S. Solheim Cup player Sherri Steinhauer shot a 5-under 67 in windy conditions Thursday to take a one-stroke lead in the LPGA State Farm Classic, while Annika Sorenstam was four shots back in defense of her last tour title.
Steinhauer, the last of the 10 automatic qualifiers for the U.S. team for the Sept. 14-16 matches against Europe in Sweden, had five birdies in her bogey-free round on the Panther Creek Country Club course. Sorenstam, the winner last year at the Rail Golf Club, had two birdies and a bogey in a round of 71.
Last season at Rail, Sorenstam won the last of her 69 LPGA Tour titles, closing with a 10-under 62 to match the lowest final-round score by a tournament winner in tour history. The tournament moved to Panther Creek this year after 31 seasons at Rail.
EUROPEAN TOUR: At Gleneagles, Scotland's Marc Warren shot an 8-under 65 to take a one-stroke lead in the first round of the Johnnie Walker Championship. Belgium's Nicolas Colsaerts had a 66 on the Jack Nicklaus-designed PGA Centenary Course, site of the 2014 Ryder Cup. Scotland's Colin Montgomerie opened with a 69, and defending champion Paul Casey shot a 71. TIGER'S TALES: Tiger Woods said winning golf tournaments is more important to him than collecting the $10 million first prize that comes with the FedEx Cup.
Even if Woods finishes second in his next three U.S. PGA Tour events, earning enough points to win the inaugural seasonlong competition, he said he'd be happier if he won tournaments and lost the title.
"I'd rather take the Ws than the three twos," Woods said in a press conference Thursday at the Tournament Players Club of Boston, site of the Deutsche Bank Championship. "That's just me."
Woods, the world's top-ranked golfer, is returning to the Tour after skipping last week's playoff-opening Barclays tournament in New York.
"If you're not ready to win, there's really no point in playing," Woods said. "When I come to play, I come to win, period."