Date: June 20, 2008
Author:

Lonard starts off well

Peter Lonard is two shots off the pace after the opening round of the Travelers Championship in Connecticut. The Aussie was struggling at one-over after eight holes but a superb back nine that included four birdies saw him finish with a 66. Jason Day is a further stroke back at three-under par, while Stuart Appleby and Nick O&aposHern headline a group of six Aussies at two-under. American trio Steve Lowery, Johnson Wagner and Brad Adamoni and England&aposs Brian Davis share the lead at six-under par. England&aposs Justin Rose heads a cluster of seven players one shot back at five-under 65. Rose, who still is seeking his first PGA Tour win, had five birdies in his bogey-free round. He is tied with Ken Duke, Lucas Glover, Michael Thompson, Tom Pernice Jr, John Huston and Peter Karmis. Vijay Singh, Stewart Cink and Kenny Perry are among 16 players tied at four-under 66, while defending champion Hunter Mahan finished with a two-under 68. It was an unlikely cast of leaders, with each having missed at least six cuts already this season, even though Lowery and Wagner own victories at the Pebble Beach and Houston, respectively. After playing his first seven holes at one under, Lowery caught fire starting with consecutive birdies at the 8th and 9th. He was flawless on the back nine, carding three straight birdies starting at the par-four 12th. Lowery, who did not play at the US Open last week, entered this tournament having missed the cut in six of his last 10 tournaments since winning the AT&T National Pro-Am in February. Wagner and Adamonis each took advantage of eagles at the short par-four, 296-yard 15th hole, while Davis scorched the TPC for eight birdies to offset a pair of bogeys at holes two and 10. Travellers Championship first round scores -6: Steve Lowery 64, Brian Davis 64, Johnson Wagner 64, Brad Adamonis -5: Ken Duke 65, Lucas Glover 65, Michael H. Thompson 65, Tom Pernice Jnr 65, Justin Rose 65, John Huston 65, Peter Karmis 65 -4: Kevin Stadler 66, Peter Lonard (Australia) 66, Chris DiMarco 66, Stewart Cink 66, J.J. Henry 66, Kent Jones 66, Bubba Watson 66, Notah Benjay III 66, Tag Ridings 66, Tim Herron 66, Vijay Singh 66, Kenny Perry 66, Fred Funk 66, Billy Mayfair 66, Dustin Johnson 66, Justin Bolli 66 Also: -3: Jason Day (Australia) 67 -2: Stuart Appleby (Australia) 68, Nathan Green (Australia) 68, Steve Allan (Australia) 68, Nick O&aposHern (Australia) 68 Brett Rumford (Australia) 68, Andrew Buckle (Australia) 68 -1: David Lutterus (Australia) 69, Mark Hensby (Australia) 69 E: Steve Elkington (Australia) 70 +2: Stephen Leaney (Australia) 72, Rod Pampling (Australia) 72, Gavin Coles (Australia) 72 +3: Matt Jones (Australia) 73 +4: Nick Flanagan (Australia) 74