Leaderboard

With puddles in the fairway and swamps in the rough, the trick was to find high ground at Newport (R.I) Country Club. Annika Sorenstam set her sights even higher yesterday in the first round of the U.S. Women's Open, and wound up in surprisingly strange territory. With her trademark consistency that had been missing the last 4 months, and the lone birdie of the first round on the ninth hole, Sorenstam shot a 2-under 69 to join a four-way tie for the lead with Se Ri Pak, Pat Hurst and 19-year-old amateur Jane Park.

Len Mattiace had played very well at the St. Jude Classic, yet he started the final round so far back he didn't bother checking a leaderboard. That turned out to be a very wise decision. Mattiace won for the second time this year as he rallied from a seven-stroke deficit by shooting a 7-under-par 64 yesterday to win the St. Jude Classic, in Memphis, Tenn., by a stroke. He pulled off the largest come-from-behind victory since Davis Love III rallied from seven down in 2001 to win at Pebble Beach.

Today: ESPN, 3-5 p.m., par-3 contest Tomorrow: ESPN, 4-7:30; 8-11, replay Friday: ESPN, 4-7:30; 8-11, replay Saturday: CBS, 3:30-7 Sunday: CBS, 2-7 ON THE WEB Masters.com will have live daily coverage of a featured group; Amen Corner (holes 11, 12, 13 at 11:45 a.m.-7 p.m.); and holes 15 and 16 (3-4 p.m. tomorrow; 10:45 a.m.-7 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday). ON PHILLY.COM For an updated leaderboard and live scoring updates, go to: philly.com/masters

From its Ben Hogan trophy room to its status as the longest-running event at its original site, the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Tex., is among the most venerable stops on the PGA Tour. This week, the ol' course is playing like a pitch-and-putt. Steve Stricker shot his second straight 63 yesterday morning, giving him a 14-under-par 126 total that set records for 36 holes and for any consecutive rounds at the Crowne Plaza Invitational - yet was barely enough to top a leaderboard filled with players taking advantage of light wind and pillow-soft greens.

Coming off one of the longest breaks in his career, Tiger Woods might get another one sooner than he would like. Woods went south on the easier North Course at Torrey Pines, hitting only one fairway and having to scramble for a birdie on his final hole for a 1-under-par 71 yesterday in the Buick Invitational at San Diego. That left him six shots behind Brandt Jobe and Thomas Levet, but he will be around the cut line today playing the South Course, which was four strokes harder.

Carl Pettersson would have to consider this a good day. He made five birdies in the 5 hours he spent on the golf course, and had only one milkshake in the 6 hours he spent inside the locker room during a rainy day at the Memorial. The best part of all was that he finished his round yesterday and was atop the leaderboard. Pettersson make up ground quickly after a 6-hour rain delay by playing bogey-free in his round of 5-under-par 67, making him the leader in the clubhouse by two shots with more than two-thirds of the field unable to finish the second round.

Brad Bryant shot his second straight 65 yesterday to move to the top of the leaderboard after the third round of the 90-hole Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. Bryant stood at 15-under-par 201 after a 7-under round at the Indian Ridge Country Club course that left him 1 stroke ahead of Nolan Henke with 36 holes to play. Henke was alone in second place at 202 after eagling the final hole for a blistering 8-under 64 at Indian Wells, one of four courses used in the tournament. The tournament format has the pros play each course in foursomes with three amateurs over the first four days.

Rory McIlroy is rebounding quite nicely after his collapse in the final round of the Masters. The 21-year-old from Northern Ireland shot an 8-under-par 64 in the rain-shortened second round of the Malaysian Open in Kuala Lumpur yesterday and shares the lead with Sweden's Alexander Noren at 11-under 133. Noren had a 69 to go with his first-round 64. Play at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club was halted for nearly 3 hours before it resumed....

Geoff Ogilvy was bogey-free over 2 days on the Blue Monster, saving par four times from the bunker yesterday on his way to a 5-under 67 to remain atop the leaderboard at the CA Championship at Doral, Fla. Remaining free from the ominous presence of Tiger Woods? That might be more difficult. Ogilvy finished off a 5-under 66 to keep one shot clear of Woods, who birdied his final two holes earlier for a 67. Woods is the three-time defending champion in the World Golf Championship event.

Tiger Woods had a chance to pull away from the field. He had to settle for a one-shot lead yesterday in the Tour Championship in Atlanta. Woods missed consecutive putts from about 4 feet late in his second round, then closed with a bogey for a 2-under-par 68 that left him atop the leaderboard at East Lake by one shot over Padraig Harrington and Sean O'Hair. The world's No. 1 player looked as though he might double his lead, but he missed a 4-foot eagle putt on the 15th hole, then missed a birdie putt from just inside 4 feet as he tried to avoid two spike marks.

Americans Mark Calcavecchia and Lee Rinker had a two-shot lead after two rounds of the Senior British Open yesterday. Calcavecchia - one of three overnight leaders - made six birdies in his 3-under-par 69. He was joined at 7-under by Rinker and Canada's Rod Spittle, who each shot 67 at Walton Heath in Walton on the Hill, England. It's the first time since 2004 that at least three players have held a share of the lead after 36 holes of a Senior British Open. Australian Peter Fowler was two shots back after a 68, with American pair John Cook (67)

Justin Leonard just turned 39 last month. He has won a dozen times on the PGA Tour. In 1997, he lifted the claret jug at Royal Troon. Two years later, he drained the most memorable putt in Ryder Cup history to cap the greatest comeback ever in that event. So the game has been good to him. But it can also be cruel. In his last 43 tournaments, he's had a single top 10, none this season. He has missed the cut in seven of his last 10 starts. But there he was yesterday at Aronimink, going around in 3-under-par 67 to grab a share of the second spot through 36 holes of the AT&T National, two shots off the lead.

Rory McIlroy is rebounding quite nicely after his collapse in the final round of the Masters. The 21-year-old from Northern Ireland shot an 8-under-par 64 in the rain-shortened second round of the Malaysian Open in Kuala Lumpur yesterday and shares the lead with Sweden's Alexander Noren at 11-under 133. Noren had a 69 to go with his first-round 64. Play at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club was halted for nearly 3 hours before it resumed....

KOHLER, Wis. - Matt Kuchar was one of those guys. You know, a somebody who was supposed to become something, preferably ASAP. He was the 1997 U.S. Amateur champion, succeeding Tiger Woods. He tied for 14th at the 1998 U.S. Open, his second major, as an amateur. And was seemingly on his way. But it didn't happen. At least not yet. Before this year, Kuchar had played in 17 majors. He'd missed the cut in all but four. A tie for 48th at the 2008 U.S. Open was his first made-cut in a major since 1999.

THE WELL-proportioned woman passed in front of us just as Tiger Woods went into his swing. "Whoa," a man to my side said to the not-nearly-as-well-proportioned woman at his side. "Now there's a lady for Tiger. "That's what he needs to be looking at. " Mark it down. At 11:04 a.m. yesterday, something was said out loud in the vicinity of Tiger Woods that was not pure encouragement, not pure empathy, not pure adulation. A little joke, a reference to a past conveniently overlooked this week during the rare appearance of golf's fallen deity, even as details of his impending divorce settlement broke on Wednesday.

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. - For most of the day, it seemed as if much of the U.S. Open field was scrummed at 1-under-par. And you needed a media guide to identify many of them. The course that gave us Open winners Jack Nicklaus in 1972, Tom Watson in 1982, Tom Kite in 1992 and Tiger Woods 10 years ago provided an opening-round leaderboard that looked more like some kind of Quad Cities pro-am. This is what those first 18 holes at a major can often turn into. And when it was in the books, one of the guys at 2-under 69 being chased at Pebble Beach Golf Links was none other than Shaun Micheel, who somehow managed to win the 2003 PGA Championship despite winning nothing before.

Today: ESPN, 3-5 p.m., par-3 contest Tomorrow: ESPN, 4-7:30; 8-11, replay Friday: ESPN, 4-7:30; 8-11, replay Saturday: CBS, 3:30-7 Sunday: CBS, 2-7 ON THE WEB Masters.com will have live daily coverage of a featured group; Amen Corner (holes 11, 12, 13 at 11:45 a.m.-7 p.m.); and holes 15 and 16 (3-4 p.m. tomorrow; 10:45 a.m.-7 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday). ON PHILLY.COM For an updated leaderboard and live scoring updates, go to: philly.com/masters

Tiger Woods had a chance to pull away from the field. He had to settle for a one-shot lead yesterday in the Tour Championship in Atlanta. Woods missed consecutive putts from about 4 feet late in his second round, then closed with a bogey for a 2-under-par 68 that left him atop the leaderboard at East Lake by one shot over Padraig Harrington and Sean O'Hair. The world's No. 1 player looked as though he might double his lead, but he missed a 4-foot eagle putt on the 15th hole, then missed a birdie putt from just inside 4 feet as he tried to avoid two spike marks.

From its Ben Hogan trophy room to its status as the longest-running event at its original site, the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Tex., is among the most venerable stops on the PGA Tour. This week, the ol' course is playing like a pitch-and-putt. Steve Stricker shot his second straight 63 yesterday morning, giving him a 14-under-par 126 total that set records for 36 holes and for any consecutive rounds at the Crowne Plaza Invitational - yet was barely enough to top a leaderboard filled with players taking advantage of light wind and pillow-soft greens.

Alex Cejka served up more proof yesterday that The Players Championship is full of surprises, not only on the devilish TPC Sawgrass but on the leaderboard. A week after he needed an epidural to restore feeling in his right arm, Cejka ran off six birdies in 11 holes to start his second round and wound up with a 5-under-par 67 to build a two-shot lead over Ian Poulter going into a weekend full of possibilities in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. An eclectic group four shots behind include Masters champion Angel Cabrera, former PGA champion David Toms and Jason Dufner.