Hawaii`s Harsh Breeze in Mercedes Championships

“A slow start but looking forward to a big finish.”

The 2004 PGA season kicked off at the Mercedes Championships at the Plantation Course in Hawaii with a total prize money of $5.3 million at stake.

Stuart Appleby surprisingly stands on top of the group with a score of 66, 7-under par while the “The King of Golf” Tiger Woods finished the day with a 71, 2-under par, tied in 17th place as he bids for his third crown in the competition.

The score turned out to be frustrating for Woods who has a strong desire to win the

competition. But no one knows when Wood`s consecutive tees will start kicking in

as this competition allows no preliminary drop-outs.

Woods’ unsatisfactory performance on the fifth hole affected him on the remaining holes. The fifth hole, with a course track of 532 yards, was a nightmare for Woods as he commented, "The hole really took a lot out of me." Although Woods placed it safely on the fairway with his longest tee shot (296yards), the second shot went over the green and fell into the hazards. Also, Woods missed a 1m bogey putt and recorded a double bogey.

However, Woods made a 6m eagle putt on the 18th hole (par5) and showed his desire for a strong comeback in the second round.

On the other hand, the match-up between Vijay Singh, who topped the prize money

list last year, and the defending champion Ernie Els ended as Vijay’s triumph. Singh

played flawlessly as he took bogey-free holes with five birdies and finished the day tied in third place (5-under par,68) while Els committed a double bogey on the first hole and showed up-and-down performances with four birdies, two bogies and a double bogey which positioned him tied in 21st place (even par, 73).

Young-Sik Ahn ysahn@donga.com