SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Steve Stricker made his U.S. Senior Open debut Thursday with an eagle on the 17th hole for an 8-under 62 to share the lead with defending champion David Toms on a soft Warren Golf Course at Notre Dame.
Toms set a U.S. Senior Open record with 10 birdies, finishing with four in a row for a 29 on the back nine.
Stricker, coming off a playoff loss last week in the American Family Insurance Championship, played in the afternoon and rolled in a 35-foot putt for eagle on the par-5 17th hole. He narrowly missed a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole.
Jerry Kelly, who won on the PGA Tour Champions event last week, and Kirk Triplett were at 64, one shot ahead of a group that included Vijay Singh.
PGA: Nate Lashley birdied the final three holes and five of the last six for a 9-under 63 and the first-round lead in the Rocket Mortgage Classic, the PGA Tour’s first event in Detroit.
Lashley, 36, had the lowest score in his PGA Tour career, a day after getting a spot at Detroit Golf Club as an alternate. Ranked 353rd in the world and No. 132 in the FedEx Cup standings, Lashley’s only top-10 finish in his two-year PGA Tour career is a tie for eighth in the Puerto Rico Open in February.
Ryan Armour and Nick Watney were a stroke back at 64. Chez Reavie, the Travelers Championship winner last week in Connecticut, and Charles Howell III and Stewart Cink topped the group at 65.
Dustin Johnson, the second-ranked player in the world, opened with a 71. Gary Woodland had a 73 in his first start since winning the U.S. Open.
EUROPEAN TOUR: Victor Perez leads defending champion Sergio Garcia and four others by one stroke after the opening round of the Andalucia Valderrama Masters at Sotogrande, Spain.
Perez hit five birdies over a flawless round for a 6-under 65.
Tournament host Garcia is right behind Perez along with American Sihwan Kim, Swede Anton Karlsson, Christiaan Bezuidenhout of South Africa, and Malaysian Gavin Green.
Garcia is seeking his fourth victory at Real Club Valderrama.
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