CLIFTON, N.J. – Former Arizona Wildcat Lorena Ochoa is going to have to stage one of the biggest comebacks of her career to win a fourth straight Sybase Classic.

Helen Alfredsson jump-started a career-best, 10-under 62 by holing out for eagle from 68 yards on her second hole, and took a two-stroke lead over Brittany Lincicome after the opening round Thursday.

Ochoa, who has won this event at two different courses, was nine shots behind the long-hitting Alfredsson. Besides the eagle, the Swede had nine birdies and a bogey at Upper Montclair Country Club on a cold, damp day punctuated by an intermittent drizzle and chilling breeze.

Alfredsson’s round was the lowest on tour this year, and it left Ochoa with 54 holes to play catch up. Her biggest come-from-behind win was in 2004, when she rallied from five shots down in the final round to win the Wachovia LPGA Classic.

Ochoa overcame a four-shot deficit in this event three years ago, when it was played at Wykagyl in New York.

“I had birdie chances, like on 18, that just didn’t go,” Ochoa said. “But I’m happy. I’m very good with the speed. I had a couple that got away and had to save par, so I feel good. (Friday), maybe, some of them will drop.”

Only two other women have won the same LPGA event four years in a row. Annika Sorenstam won five straight Mizuno Classics in Japan from 2001-05, and Laura Davies won four straight Standard Register PING titles in Arizona from 1994-97.

That doesn’t mean No. 1-ranked Ochoa can be written off yet.

“As far as I know, this is a four-round tournament,” said Suzann Pettersen, who was third after a 7-under 65. “That’s all I can say.”

The 44-year-old Alfredsson made the game look easy, hitting fairways and greens all day. After starting on the back nine, the former European Solheim Cup captain eagled No. 11, birdied the 12th and chipped in from the edge of the green on the 13th for another birdie. Even with a bogey on No. 15, she shot 6-under 30 on the back side.

Alfredsson also birdied the par-4 first, one of eight birdies from 8 feet or less. She played the four par-5s in 4 under.

“Anybody, when we play good, you wonder why you don’t do this all the time, because it’s so easy,” she said. “It’s not strenuous, your head is not going crazy, your body doesn’t hurt. At my age, all that stuff usually comes along with it. So you don’t know why. I just felt that it’s just one of those days.”

Texas Open

SAN ANTONIO – Three-time champion Justin Leonard and Paul Goydos shot 7-under 63s to share the first-round lead in the PGA Texas Open.

The 44-year-old Goydos, who publicly opened up this month about the death of his ex-wife in January and raising his two teenage daughters, had the lead for most of the day until Leonard birdied three of his last four holes in the afternoon.

Irish Open

BALTRAY, Ireland – Italy’s Francesco Molinari shot a 9-under 63 to take a one-stroke leader over Sweden’s Johan Edfors in the Irish Open.

CLIFTON, N.J. – Hall of Fame golfer Annika Sorenstam is going to have a girl this fall.

The 38-year-old Swede, former UA golfer, and her husband, Mike McGee, announced the gender of her first baby on her blog on Thursday.

“To use golf terms, we just “made the turn” from a timing standpoint and are very excited that everything looks good so far,” Sorenstam said. “We’ll keep you posted.”

Sorenstam retired from the LPGA Tour last year after 72 victories and 10 majors, saying she wanted to start a business and a family.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Tiger Woods must be kicking himself for dropping out of Stanford two years early. If this golf career doesn’t work out for him, he doesn’t even have a college degree to fall back on.

OK, his game is not that bad.

But it sure can be made to seem that way.

It’s hard to believe it was only six weeks ago when Woods went through yet another coronation. He rallied from five shots behind and won the Arnold Palmer Invitational with a birdie putt on the final hole. He was one month into his return from major knee surgery that kept him out of competition for eight months.

And what has he done lately?

Woods tied for sixth at the Masters. He was within one shot of the lead going to the back nine at Quail Hollow, closed with nothing but pars and finished fourth. He was in the final group Sunday at The Players Championship, five shots behind Alex Cejka, then made bogeys from the pine straw, rough and sand on the front nine and wound up in eighth place.

For any other player, that four-week record would make him one of the hottest players in golf.

For Woods, it’s bordering on a slump.

“What has he won, 11 of his last 18?” Paul Goydos said. “Yeah, I’m really concerned about this flash in the pan.”

This is nothing new.

A week after Woods won the U.S. Open at Bethpage Black for his eighth major championship, Golf Digest ran an online survey asking if he would break Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 majors, and 73 percent said yes. Two years later, after Woods had gone eight majors without winning, the magazine posed the same question, and 71 percent said no.

Woods once said the media tend to exaggerate when he plays poorly – and when he plays well.

But it’s his own fault.

Woods is the one who set outrageous standards by winning the career Grand Slam at age 24, by winning one U.S. Open by 15 shots and another on one good leg. He has never lost a PGA Tour event when leading by more than one shot going into the final round. And his 66 victories on the PGA Tour are one more than the next six players combined in the world rankings.

He contributes to the expectations by what he says.

Woods now has 16 consecutive top 10s in stroke play, a streak that was mentioned to him after the Masters.

“I have a hard time looking at it that way,” he said. “It’s just the nature of how I am. You want to try and win every event you play in, and obviously, I haven’t done that this year.”

Local golf

Skyline Country Club pro Don Littrell started with a pair of birdies last week and went on to shoot a 2-under-par 70 to win the PGA Southwest Section Southern Chapter Pro Series No. 2 at Ventana Canyon.

Ex-University of Arizona golfer Brandon Smith of Ventana Canyon was second at 72 and Andrew Cochran of Stone Canyon was third at 73.

Local pros will be in pro-am action Wednesday at the Omni Tucson National.

• The Arizona Paralyzed Veterans will hold their fundraising golf tournament May 31 at Randolph North. For more information, call Karen L. Gialle at 256-5311 or Joe Chitty at 574-0129.

Citizen Staff Report

PGA TOUR

What: Texas Open

Site: San Antonio

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday

Course: LaCantera Golf Club, Resort Course (7,153 yards, par 70)

Television: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, noon-3 p.m., 5:30-8:30 p.m.) and CBS (Saturday-Sunday, noon-3 p.m.)

Last week: Sweden’s Henrik Stenson won The Players Championship, closing with a 6-under 66 for a four-stroke victory over Ryder Cup teammate Ian Poulter. Tiger Woods shot a 73 in the final round to finish eighth, seven strokes back.

LPGA TOUR

What: Sybase Classic

Site: Clifton, N.J.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday

Course: Upper Montclair Country Club (6,413 yards, par 72)

Television: ESPN2 (Friday, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.)

Last week: Cristie Kerr won the Michelob Ultra Open for the second time. shooting 69-63-66-70 for a two-stroke victory over In-Kyung Kim. Kerr, also the 2005 Kingsmill winner, has 12th career LPGA Tour titles.

CHAMPIONS TOUR

What: Regions Charity Classic

Site: Hoover, Ala.

Schedule: Friday-Sunday

Course: Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at Ross Bridge (7,473 yards, par 72)

Television: Golf Channel (Friday, 3:30-5:30 p.m.; Saturday, 3:30-6:30 p.m.; Sunday, 4-6:30 p.m.)

Last event: Tom Lehman made a par putt on the second playoff hole to become the 13th player to win in his Champions Tour debut, teaming with Bernhard Langer to beat Craig Stadler and Jeff Sluman on April 26 in the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf.

PGA EUROPEAN TOUR

What: Irish Open

Site: Baltray, Ireland

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday

Course: County Louth Golf Club (7,063 yards, par 72)

Television: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 7-10 a.m.; Saturday, 7-10 a.m., 1-3 p.m.; Sunday, 6-9 a.m., 1-3 p.m.)

Last week: Argentina’s Daniel Vancsik won the Italian Open for his second PGA European Tour title, closing with a 6-under 65 for a six-stroke victory over John Daly, Raphael Jacquelin and Robert Rock.

The Associated Press

Rosen

As close to perfect as he dared to get in the maddening game of inches Monday, Matt Rosen relearned a valuable lesson.

“I know everybody says it, but you have to play each shot (one) at a time,” the former St. Gregory College Prep star said. “You have to be mentally into each shot.

“Well, I forgot it once. . . .”

And because of it, he missed a 2-foot putt on the Tucson Country Club par-3 No. 16 hole. At least no serious damage was done.

Rosen shot a 5-under-par 67 Monday to advance with five others – including two others with Tucson ties – to the sectional round of U.S. Open qualifying play.

Golfers doing well in the sectional round will advance to June’s U.S. Open.

Rosen, a regular member of the Phoenix-based Gateway minitour, forgot about the missed putt and got himself into the right frame of mind.

“It wasn’t easy,” he said of parring the next two holes.

“I hit a perfect approach and thought, ‘Well, let’s get out of here,’ ” he said.

Ryan Dillon of Desert Springs shot a 64 to lead the qualifiers, who also included recent former University of Arizona players Nathan Tyler (66) and Creighton Honeck (67), Chandler’s Andrew Yun and Mesa’s Andrew Augustyniak, who both won out in a six-player playoff after firing 68s.

Notable in the day’s play was the 31 of Salpointe Catholic High senior Ricky Lee on the second nine. He ended with 69, as did ex-Salpointe and UA Wildcat Brian Prouty, who missed a 6-foot putt by inches on No. 18.

Tyler has thrived on the Gateway, last year in Texas and this year in Phoenix, but is looking for his first win.

“We’re out here to peak in time for Q School (PGA Qualifying School),” Tyler said.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Henrik Stenson was famous for reasons he never imagined.

Two months ago, he was best known as the Swede who stripped down to nothing but his underwear and a golf glove while playing from a water hazard at Doral.

Out of curiosity, he searched the Internet and found 143 articles, more news than he ever got for his game.

“I guess I got as much attention off that thing as from my results the last 10 years,” he said.

His golf was all the rage Sunday at The Players Championship.

With a final round that was close to perfect, Stenson was the only player to keep bogeys off his card on his way to a 6-under-par 66 that gave him a four-shot victory at 12-under 276, the 10th win of his career and by far his biggest.

Trailing by five shots on the treacherous TPC Sawgrass, he took advantage of a swift and shocking collapse by Alex Cejka, never had to worry about Tiger Woods and blew away everyone else in firm, fast conditions rarely seen this side of a major.

“I was thinking that if I could finish in front of Tiger, that might be good enough,” said Ian Poulter, who shot a 70 and to finish second. “But I wasn’t expecting someone to go out there and shoot 66.”

The sun-baked gallery was curious how Cejka would fare with a five-shot lead playing in the final group with Woods.

Four holes and a little more than an hour into the final round, the lead was gone. Cejka shot 42 on the front and wound up with a 79 and tied for ninth at 284.

Focus quickly shifted to Woods, and whether he could rally to win from five shots behind as he did at Bay Hill. But not this time. Woods missed three fairways that led to bogeys on the front nine, and trailed by as many as eight shots on the back nine.

Woods managed a 73 to finish eighth at 283, his first top 10 at The Players Championship since he won in 2001, and his 16th consecutive top 10 in stroke-play events worldwide.

Stenson played so well that he had a four-shot leading standing on the 17th tee, his only mission to make sure it found grass beneath it. He kept his bogey-free round in tact to the end, walking off the green with his daughter in his arms.

“It’s just going to give me a lot of confidence to go out there and control myself and play as well as I did on the last day at TPC Sawgrass and to hold off such a strong field,” he said.

Stenson earned $1.71 million for a victory that moves him to No. 5 in the world ranking.

LPGA Tour

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Cristie Kerr took the lead with a birdie on the 15th hole and held off In-Kyung Kim by two strokes to win the Michelob Ultra Open.

Kerr, the 2005 Kingsmill winner, had a 16-under 268 total and earned $330,000 for her 12th career LPGA Tour title. She closed with a 1-under 70 after opening with rounds of 69, 63 and 66.

Kim finished with a 71. Song-Hee Kim (71) and Lindsey Wright (73) tied for third at 13 under.

Ex-Arizona Wildcat Lorena Ochoa, the first- and second-round leader, shot her second straight 74 to finish 10th at 7 under.

PGA Europe

TURIN, Italy – Argentina’s Daniel Vancsik won the Italian Open for his second PGA European Tour title, closing with a 6-under 65 for a six-stroke victory.

Former Arizona Wildcat Lorena Ochoa shot a 6-under-par 65 Friday for a tournament-record 13-under total and a three-shot lead at the LPGA Michelob Ultra Open.

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Lorena Ochoa is threatening to turn the Michelob Ultra Open into a runaway in another of her annual dominating runs.

She’s also probably the person least likely to say so.

“It’s never good to think that way,” Ochoa said Friday after shooting a 6-under-par 65 for a tournament-record 13-under 129 total and a three-shot lead.

“You always need to be ready and you always need to be humble and tomorrrow’s going to be a new day, a new start,” she said. “I’m going to play like if I’m behind for two or three shots. I never like to think I’m winning.”

But Ochoa is, and looking mighty comfortable.

The world’s top-ranked player and first-round leader took advantage of perfect playing conditions and soft greens to get eight birdies, matching her first-round total. Only two bogeys in her last four holes kept her from making the outcome look like a foregone conclusion.

And it’s not as if the rest of the field rolled over. On the contrary, In-Kyung Kim, Song-Hee Kim and Cristie Kerr all finished at 10- under 132, and all three played better than Ochoa.

Still, coming off a wire-to-wire victory two weeks ago in her native Mexico, Ochoa has been the leader after six consecutive rounds and looks as if she might be on one of her rolls.

She has won at least three tournaments in a row once in each of the last three seasons, and last season won five of her first six events, including the last four in succession.

Teeing off around the time that Song-Hee Kim was finishing off a record-tying 63 and In-Kyung Kim was polishing off a 64 that put them in the lead at 10 under, Ochoa started with three straight pars and then made birdies on six of the next eight holes to retake the lead.

“I just thought ‘I need to be patient and take advantage of the easy holes and the par 5s and go from there,’ and that’s what I did,” Ochoa said. “And then right away, I started making birdies and felt very comfortable.

“It think it was important to get those first couple of birdies to get me going.”

It proved crucial, too, when others kept posting low numbers on a day when the fairways were still soft on the 6,315-yard layout, but soft greens made the pins popular targets.

Rookie Michelle Wie, eight back at 137 after an up-and-down 67, had one of the shots of the day, holing her approach for eagle on the par-4 10th, her first hole of the day. She immediately followed with a bogey, though, and had three more to minimize six birdies.

Song-Hee Kim, who tied the course record shared by six others, three times almost holed shots from off the green, and rolled in a 30-foot putt on the difficult eighth for birdie.

“I had a perfect day today,” she said through a translator.

PGA Tour

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Alex Cejka served up more proof Friday that The Players Championship is full of surprises, not only on the devilish TPC Sawgrass but on the leader board.

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 67 to build a two-shot lead over Ian Poulter going into a weekend full of possibilities.

Neither of the top two players have ever won on the PGA Tour, and only one player in the 35-year history of this event has ever made this his first PGA Tour victory. An eclectic group four shots behind included Masters champion Angel Cabrera, former PGA champion David Toms and Jason Dufner, an alternate when he showed up Monday and earned a tee time when Brandt Snedeker withdrew with an injury.

Tiger Woods did his best to get back into the hunt, with a delicate pitch out of the mounds for a short birdie, and making an important save on the par-5 16th by trying to land short of the green with his third shot, even though he was only 45 yards away. He was seven strokes back after a 69.

PGA Europe

TURIN, Italy – Argentina’s Daniel Vancsik shot a 6-under 65 to take a one-stroke lead over Northern Ireland’s Gareth Maybin in the Italian Open.

Prouty wins Gateway Classic Desert Summer event by five strokes

It wasn’t just his first professional victory, it was notice that Brian Prouty has “game.”

The former Salpointe Catholic High School and University of Arizona athlete shot a 17-under-par 199 for three rounds to win the Gateway Classic Desert Summer Series No. 7 by five strokes Friday.

The win wasn’t any kind of monkey off the back. It was just part of the process for the second-year pro who has already paid his adversity dues.

He’s been hampered by surgery on both wrists since he managed a sparkling senior year in 2007 at UA that included second-team All-Pac-10 Conference status and a 62 in a PING Invitational.

He matched that 62 in the second round Thursday for the 10-under course record at Raven Golf Club at Verrado in Buckeye.

“It was basically that second round,” said Prouty of his record-setter that included eight birdies and an eagle-3. “On the No. 10 hole to start the day, I hit a six-iron on (the green) and (made) a 15-foot putt and never stopped.”

Friday’s round was play-it-cool time and he endured with a 2-under 70 as nobody challenged his five-stroke lead.

Matt Rosen, a St. Gregory College Prep graduate, fired a 66 in round three to finish in a tie for sixth. Nathan Tyler (Sahuaro, UA) was 11th.

Prouty now has four top-10 finishes in the Gateway Spring Series, including a second place to former Palo Verde High golfer Ben Kern two weeks ago at Chandler’s Lone Tree Club. That event had four Tucsonans – including Nathan Tyler and Jacob Rogers – in the top 10.

Prouty struggled in the Gateway Winter Series this year after his second wrist surgery but managed 16th place in the championship.

He takes over the money lead on the Tour with $34,525, thanks to the $16,000 payday Friday. “I feel I’m knocking on the door,” he said. “I have tried a few Monday qualifiers for the Nationwide (Tour) and will keep at it, then go back to (PGA) Tour School. It makes me feel good that I still (have) the game.”

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – A week off did nothing to slow down former Arizona Wildcat Lorena Ochoa, and a month away from the game found Lindsey Wright in the same groove she was in before a vacation.

Ochoa picked up where she left off in winning two weeks ago in her native Mexico with eight birdies against one bogey Thursday. Her 7-under-par 64 gave her a one-shot lead over Wright after the first round of the Michelob Ultra Open.

“This is only the start,” said Ochoa, a three-time runner-up in the event. “We have three more days. One at a time.”

Wright, a nonwinner in five seasons, hadn’t played since finishing fourth in the Kraft Nabisco Championship, the season’s first major in the first week in April, but was bogey-free on the soggy 6,315-yard River Course at Kingsmill that has received rain for several days.

Hee-Won Han, Sarah Lee and Minea Blomqvist shot 66s to share third place. Seon Hwa Lee, Na Yeon Choi and Amy Yang shot 67s and 2007 champion Suzann Pettersen was among seven at 68.

In all, 45 of 144 players took advantage of the soft greens and broke par.

Other notables making a run at the leader board included 2005 winner Cristie Kerr, who got to 4-under but then stumbled to finish at 2-under 69; rookie Vicky Hurst, who got to 4- under but gave two shots back on her last four holes to finish at 68; and Michelle Wie, who got to 3-under after her first 12 holes, but had two bogeys coming in to finish six shots back at 1-under 70.

The rainy start and sometimes gusting wind seemed to be of little consequence to Ochoa, the world’s top-ranked player. She made three birdie putts of 17 feet or longer while working on her putting alignment and said she’s starting to feel more comfortable on the greens.

“That was a big change for me because I didn’t feel comfortable aiming to the hole,” Ochoa said of her old putting style, which had her coming across the ball instead of hitting it head on. “It didn’t feel right in the beginning, but now I’m seeing a lot of good results.”

She finished with a flourish, hitting a booming drive on the 382-yard, par-14 18th that left her with about 100 yards to the flagstick, and then an approach to about 12 feet.

PGA Tour

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Ben Crane should have known what was coming when he rolled in a 30-foot birdie putt on the first hole of the day. He kept right on pouring them in until he had a 7-under 65 and a one-shot lead in The Players Championship.

Crane made four birdie putts longer than 20 feet, kept his ball on land throughout another wild opening round Thursday on the TPC Sawgrass and wound up atop a leader board devoid of the biggest stars.

Tiger Woods couldn’t make a putt outside 4 feet.

Phil Mickelson ran off three straight birdies early in his round, then couldn’t keep the ball in play.

Defending champion Sergio Garcia opened with a 71 and already was looking forward to going home to Spain.

Crane couldn’t relate.

He had a one-shot lead over John Mallinger, Alex Cejka and Richard S. Johnson, with a large group at 67 that included Retief Goosen, David Toms, Camilo Villegas and Scott Verplank, who had two eagles – one of them from 150 yards out on the 15th fairway, another with a putt that seemed about that long on the par-5 second.

Woods opened his round with four straight birdie chances inside 12 feet and missed them all. He wound up with a 71, keeping alive his streak of never breaking 70 in the opening round at this elite event. Mickelson hit iron off the 18th tee but it worked out beautifully with an approach to 5 feet for birdie to salvage a 73.

PGA Europe

TURIN, Italy – Northern Ireland’s Gareth Maybin shot a course-record 7-under 64 to take a three-shot lead after the first round of the Italian Open.

Llaneza

A young team striving to renew grand tradition needs a steady hand of age, even if it’s from a sophomore.

Arizona women’s golf coach Shelly Haywood, whose task it is to bring the Wildcats back into the national elite, is grateful for Alejandra Llaneza, who is ranked No. 42 in the nation.

“She’s our team leader,” Haywood says with no touch of regret.

Llaneza, one of Mexico’s anointed heirs to former Wildcat Lorena Ochoa, has posted a 73.35 stroke average, including a round of 67. She’s also third in the country in the short game rankings.

The latter point is cause for celebration as the short game is somewhat down the list on the wow factor in college golf, even if it is No. 1 in importance.

Llaneza’s first year at UA last season, when she was third on the team in stroke average, helped her become more mature mentally. That, and the help of former UA pro Susie Meyers.

“She brought me into positive thinking,” said Llaneza, “not get frustrated when there is a bad shot. Stay in the moment and go on to the next. Make yourself see your goal.”

That goal – to fulfill great potential – has been growing since she was 6 in Mexico City.

Llaneza’s father, Jorge, began to take his impressionable daughter to the golf course. By 8, she was in a tournament and by 14 she was a national youth icon.

Meanwhile, she went to eighth grade in Dallas to learn English and to continue her golf development.

“I was on a winter tour and played in all conditions,” Llaneza says. “I didn’t complain when it was 32 degrees.”

She didn’t promise at 5 feet 2 to be a long hitter, but her short game was art, even when she was younger.

At UA, she is frequently in the weight room and “works as hard as she has to,” Haywood said.

Haywood saw a fire in her during the recruiting process.

“She’s had some struggles, letting her emotions get the best of her,” Haywood said. “But she’s determined. She’s a little bulldog.”

UA in second place

UA is in a three-way tie for second place at the NCAA West Regional in Tempe after Thursday’s first round.

The Wildcats shot an even-par for a 288 to tie with Texas and Texas A&M while Arizona State (273) is in first.

UA freshman Isabelle Boineau used three birdies on the back nine for a 2-under par 70 to lead the Wildcats. She’s 10th overall.

Llaneza fired a 1-under-par 71 and is tied for 13th.

Freshman Margarita Ramos was tied for 17th with a 72, senior Amanda Wilson was in 54th with a 75 and freshman Nikki Koller was tied for 67th with a 76.

Tiger Woods hits from the ninth tee during a practice round for the Players Championship at the TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., on Tuesday.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – This is not the same Tiger Woods.

Despite winning at Bay Hill and finishing fourth last week, Woods is missing his power – whether it’s off the tee with a driver or from the fairway with irons that are sometimes two more clubs than what he used before surgery last June to rebuild his left knee.

The power shortage was never more evident than in the final round of the Masters, playing with Phil Mickelson, when Woods usually was the first to hit from the fairway. Even his rival couldn’t help but notice.

“I kept having to wait for him to hit,” Mickelson jokingly said Tuesday.

More evidence came last week at Quail Hollow.

By measuring drives on the 56 holes that were not par 3s, Mickelson’s average tee shot was nearly 14 yards longer than Woods’.

“I’ve been away from the game for a long time,” Woods said Tuesday, referring to his eight-month layoff after the U.S. Open. “And it’s going to take a little bit of time before my body gets back to where I can hit the ball the same distances. I don’t hit the ball the same distance with my irons or my driver.”

Distance is not an issue at The Players Championship, which begins here Thursday and where the TPC Sawgrass is only 7,215 yards. Like most property in Florida, it’s all about location.

Even so, Woods bristled at the suggestion from NBC Sports analyst Johnny Miller that he would be better off using a 3-wood to navigate the Stadium Course instead of a driver.

“We’ve got par 5s out here. You’ve got to be able to use it,” Woods said. “If Johnny says you can’t hit drivers on 9 and 11, you’re giving up two opportunities to get close to the green.”

The Players Championship will be the fourth straight tournament that Mickelson has a chance to replace Woods at No. 1 in the world ranking.

Lefty would have to win and have Woods finish worse than fourth place alone for that to happen.

Is change imminent? Geoff Ogilvy isn’t so sure.

“Every time that there’s been this talk about, ‘He’s vulnerable,’ and ‘He’s not where he was,’ he goes and wins eight of the next 12 tournaments,” Ogilvy said. “So I don’t think anyone out here is concerned that Tiger is not going to be Tiger anymore.”

———

PGA TOUR

The Players Championship

Site: Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday

Course: TPC Sawgrass, Players Stadium Course (7,215 yards, par 72)

Purse: TBA ($9.5 million in 2008). Winner’s share: TBA ($1.71 million in 2008).

TV: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.) and NBC (Saturday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.)

Last year: Sergio Garcia won his seventh PGA Tour title, making a clutch par putt to force a playoff and hitting the island green 17th on the first extra hole to beat Paul Goydos.

Last week: Sean O’Hair won the Quail Hollow Championship for his third PGA Tour victory. Tiger Woods was fourth, two strokes back.

Notes: Woods won the 2001 tournament, his last top-10 finish at TPC Sawgrass. . . Twenty-four of the top 25 players in the world ranking are in the field, with only No. 16 Lee Westwood missing.

LPGA TOUR

Michelob Ultra Open

Site: Williamsburg, Va.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday

Course: Kingsmill Resort & Spa, River Course (6,315 yards, par 71)

Purse: $2.2 million. Winner’s share: $330,000

TV: ESPN2 (Friday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.; Sunday, noon-2 p.m).

Last year: Ex-UA Wildcat Annika Sorenstam won her 72nd and last LPGA Tour title. She retired at the end of the season.

Last event: Ex-Wildcat Lorena Ochoa won the Corona Championship in her native Mexico for the second straight year.

Notes: The top-ranked Ochoa is in the field along with No. 2 Yani Tseng, No. 3 Jiyai Shin, No. 5 Pettersen, Michelle Wie and Kraft Nabisco winner Brittany Lincicome.

PGA EUROPEAN TOUR

Italian Open

Site: Turin, Italy

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday

Course: Royal Park I Roveri (7,222 yards, par 71)

Purse: $1.74 million. Winner’s share: $290,155.

TV: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 6:30-8 a.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 6:30-9:30 a.m.)

Last year: South Africa’s Hennie Otto won his first European title.

Last week: Thomas Levet won the Spanish Open in becoming the first Frenchman to win five European tour titles.

Notes: John Daly is in the field along with Otto, Levet, Darren Clarke and Colin Montgomerie.

Not one to let a perfect spring day pass him by, David McDaniel crafted the best of his four straight Tucson City Amateur championships.

“The first day was a desert course (Fred Enke) and (Saturday at Randolph) I missed a lot of putts,” McDaniel said, “but (Sunday) I got rolling.”

The Canyon del Oro High graduate rolled over the Dell Urich back nine with a 63 and won the title by 12 strokes with a 10-under- par 274.

There were no illusions about what the script was as Championship Flight golfers arrived Sunday ready to battle for second place. It was a man playing against boys – literally, although University of Arizona sophomore Takuyi Fuji eventually claimed second with a 65 Sunday.

The boys were high school stars Billy Flower of Catalina Foothills, Ian Patterson of Immaculate Heart and Alex McMahon of Ironwood Ridge.

One thing the trio learned was Dell Urich looks nice and easy, especially on a sunny day with light breezes, but it can bite you.

“Trouble on a few holes,” said Flower, who salvaged a tie for fourth place.

Flower had four birdies on the front nine and the roles were reversed on the back when Patterson go hot. Patterson missed a chance at a finishing birdie when his downhill lie rolled over the hole.

The greens were making their own breaks, the two agreed.

“This course will keep you honest,” Patterson said.

Aside from McDaniel’s clinic, the story of the day was Fuji, who moved up from eighth place.

“I hit the iron shots all day,” he said. “I never had a putt of more than six feet.”

Fuji plays the game regularly but would like to improve.

“I want to walk on and play for U of A,” he said, “but so far nobody wants me, I guess.”

Sean O'Hair watches his putt on the 17th hole during the final round of the Quail Hollow Championship on Sunday at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, N.C. O'Hair won the tournament at 11 under par.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Standing on the 18th tee, Sean O’Hair asked his caddie where he stood in the Quail Hollow Championship and was told that he had a one-shot lead.

“Over who?” O’Hair asked.

It wasn’t Tiger Woods. It might not have mattered.

Five weeks after blowing a five-shot lead at Bay Hill against the world’s No. 1 player, O’Hair was determined to keep putting himself in contention until he figured out how to win down the stretch.

That time came Sunday against one of the strongest fields of the year, with Woods in his rearview mirror.

O’Hair, 26, closed with a 3-under 69 – the only player from the last nine groups to break 70 – and made enough key birdies that finishing with consecutive bogeys on the two toughest holes at Quail Hollow didn’t cost him.

He wound up with a one-shot victory over Lucas Glover and Bubba Watson to become only the third player in his 20s with at least three PGA Tour victories. The others are Sergio Garcia and Adam Scott.

“Losing (stunk) at Bay Hill,” O’Hair said. “Even though it’s tough to lose like that, to lose a five-shot lead against Tiger, you still learn from it. I talked to my coach. I talked to my caddie, Paul (Tesori). And we just all said all I have to do is keep putting myself in those situations, and at some point I’m going to learn how to win. It’s just nice to win as quickly as I did after Bay Hill.”

O’Hair took the outright lead with a two-putt birdie from 70 feet on the 15th, then seized control with an 8-iron to 8 feet for birdie on the 16th hole, allowing him some room for error on the frightening finishing holes.

“I just hit it as hard as I could and tried to flight it,” O’Hair said, “and hit really a perfect golf shot.”

Glover, who bogeyed the par-3 17th, had a chance to force a playoff until his approach bounded over the firm green and his birdie chip turned away to the left. He closed with a 71 to join Watson (70) in a tie for second.

Woods struggled with his game throughout the final round, but he still had a chance to tie for the lead when he drove the par-4 14th green and had an eagle putt from just inside 25 feet. He three-putted for par, then failed to birdie the par-5 15th. Woods finished with 10 straight pars for a 72 to finish alone in fourth, two shots behind.

“I had my opportunity there at 14. I made a mistake there,” Woods said. “I knew the green was baked out. It was downwind, and I didn’t heed my own warning, and ended up putting too hard.”

Watson, who has never won on the PGA Tour or Nationwide Tour, was atop the leader board for most of the back nine until he couldn’t make the short putts required of champions. He missed from 6 feet for birdie on the 15th, and the same distance on the 16th.

Glover also missed a 5-foot birdie putt on the 15th that ultimately cost him.

O’Hair allowed for a few nervous moments with a three-putt bogey from 25 feet on the 18th, one of the fastest putts on the course.

He was spared when Glover’s shot was too strong.

“I thought it was good, I really did,” Glover said of his pitching wedge. “It was either wind or adrenaline, probably a little of both.”

PGA Europe

GIRONA, Spain – Thomas Levet won the Spanish Open to become the first Frenchman to win five PGA European Tour titles, shooting a 4-under 68 for a two-stroke victory over Paraguay’s Fabrizio Zanotti.

Bubba Watson lines up a putt on the ninth hole during the second round of the Quail Hollow Championship on Friday at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, N.C. Watson shot a 7-under-par 65 on Friday and shares the lead with Retief Goosen.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Bubba Watson overpowered Quail Hollow and wound up with a perfect day. He tied the course record with a 30 on the front nine, shot a 7-under-par 65 to share the lead, and doesn’t have to play with Tiger Woods.

Retief Goosen, a two-time U.S. Open champion who thrives on fast greens, had a 68 on Friday to join Watson atop the leader board at the Quail Hollow Championship with an 8-under 136.

Woods seized control with a 55-foot birdie putt on the ninth hole and had a two-shot lead for most of the back nine until a sloppy finish, making bogeys on two of the last three holes for a 72 that left him one shot behind.

Still, it was shaping up as an entertaining weekend packed with star power.

Ten players were separated by two shots going into the weekend on a course that proved it doesn’t need rough to be frightening, not with firm, slick greens that made it difficult to get close to the hole.

Former Masters champion Zach Johnson, one of eight players who had at least a share of the lead at one point, was the only player to reach 10-under par until he bogeyed the last three holes for a 67 and joined the group at 7-under 137 that included Woods, Jim Furyk (66) and George McNeill (68).

Another shot back was Phil Mickelson, whose 71 was anything but routine. Lefty was finding his groove until he four-putted from 40 feet for double bogey on the 17th hole. He also had a two-putt par that featured two clubs – a 64-degree sand wedge on the fourth green to get over a steep slope and a putter for the remaining 5 feet.

He will play with Camilo Villegas, who had a 67.

Watson has never won a tournament and doesn’t get much attention except the freak show he puts on with his outrageous length, such as the 380-yard drive at No. 5 that left him a 9-iron into the green on the 569-yard par 5. He plays practice rounds with Woods when he can, but he expected a pairing with Woods in a tournament might be vastly different.

And he says he doesn’t like attention, especially when the cameras come around.

“It’s just because I play golf because I love the golf courses, I love to play, and now I’ve got all these strangers staring at me,” Watson said. “I get nervous around people.”

Woods and Goosen made sure that wouldn’t be the case.

Goosen, who won at Innisbrook on greens that were crusty and slick, holed a 20-foot birdie putt on his final hole to join the leaders. A few minutes later, Woods completed his mini-meltdown.

From just off the par-5 15th green in two, his eagle chip was too hard and he missed the 5-foot birdie. Then came a tee shot into the trees on the 16th, leading to bogey. And on the 18th, his approach went to the back of the green – the pin was in the front – and from 90 feet away, he three-putted for bogey to fall out of the lead.

“I didn’t drive the ball particularly well today, didn’t hit my irons as well as I’d like,” Woods said. “I was hanging in there. If I could have posted 9 (under), I would have probably gotten the most out of that round I could have. It just didn’t work out that way.”

PGA Europe

GIRONA, Spain – France’s Thomas Levet shot a 5-under 67 to take a two-stroke lead in the Spanish Open. John Daly’s 72 left him 11 strokes back in his first tournament of the season.

Levet had a 13-under 131 total on the Catalunya course. Denmark’s Soren Hansen was second after a 70. Daly is serving a six-month PGA Tour suspension.

Canyon del Oro sophomore Gentry Hicks.

Canyon del Oro sophomore Gentry Hicks might want to play at The Pines Golf Club at Marana more often.

The 15-year-old, who won the Class 4A Sonoran Region boys golf championship in the fall, fired a hole-in-one Thursday, using a 6 iron on the 200-yard par-3 sixth hole. Hicks and his foursome played from the gold tees. The ace, his first, was witnessed by his dad, Murray, and friends Derek Metz and Tom Olla.

In November, Hicks won the Sonoran Region individual championship in a playoff against teammate Ryan Klump. Hicks posted a two-day score of 145 (75-70) at Torres Blancas for the region title. He helped CDO to a second-place finish in the region behind Catalina Foothills.

A week later, he was one of three CDO golfers with top-20 showings in the 4A-I state championship in Buckeye at the Sundance Golf Course, leading the Dorados to a fourth-place finish.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Masters is over. The Tiger & Phil show might just be getting started.

Tiger Woods matched the course record with a 30 on the front nine, where he closed with three straight birdies Thursday morning to finish off a 7-under 65 at the Quail Hollow Championship.

Phil Mickelson followed in the afternoon by chipping in for eagle and making a remarkable par save from under a video board for a 5-under 67 that put him in a tie for second.

They did not play together, as was the case three weeks ago in an electric final-round pairing at Augusta National. But on a warm and breezy afternoon in Carolina, it seemed as though they were never far apart.

A few fans taunted Woods early in his round, calling out, “Let’s go, Phil!” as he walked by.

Mickelson couldn’t escape a familiar name even as he lumbered to the finish, as fans called out, “You’re only two shots behind Tiger!”

“It’s only one round,” Mickelson said. “There’s a lot of golf left.”

Even so, the Quail Hollow Championship served up quite an appetizer on a course that even was reminiscent of Augusta with virtually no rough and slick greens.

The emphasis was not accuracy off the tee as much as wizardry with the short game, and both players were up to the task.

Woods was plodding along the back nine, failing to birdie either of the par 5s, until he ran off six birdies and two splendid par saves on the front nine.

After twice putting himself in tough positions, he hit a low pitch out of a swale on the second hole to a foot, then hit another wedge that stopped a few inches next to the cup on the fourth.

“I hit a couple of loose shots here and there, but I really putted well,” Woods said. “I had a couple of key saves – made a nice little up-and-down at 2 and just a really good save at 4 that kept the round going. It’s always nice when you birdie the last three.”

PGA Europe

GIRONA, Spain – Denmark’s Soren Hansen shot a 9-under 63 to take a one-stroke lead over France’s Thoms Levet in the Spanish Open.

Hansen had nine birdies, an eagle and a double bogey on the Catalunya course. John Daly, still serving a six-month PGA Tour suspension, opened with a 70 in his first European tour start of the year.