Page 18 - ARUBA TODAY

A18 SPORTS
Saturday 5 January 2019

Tway returns to Kapalua as a tour winner and leads with 66

By DOUG FERGUSON the Tournament of Cham-
KAPALUA, Hawaii (AP) — pions moved here in 1999.
Kevin Tway first played The others were David
Kapalua as a 15-year-old Duval, Sergio Garcia and
a week before his father most recently Daniel Cho-
competed in the Sentry pra in 2008.
Tournament of Champions But it's very early, and
for the first time, an experi- there's some prominent
ence memorable for Bob names right behind him.
Tway getting stung by a Johnson and Thomas are
centipede and having to the last two winners at Ka-
only watch.Tway is a lot palua. Both dropped a shot
older, much taller and a lot on the par-4 sixth, and both
better now. The Safeway made plenty of birdies to
Open champion made his atone for it. Woodland had
debut in winners-only field eight birdies to account for
Thursday with a 7-under 66 a few of his mistakes.
on the Plantation course Marc Leishman was at 68
to build a one-shot lead after being hopeful of shar-
over Dustin Johnson, Justin ing the lead. Coming off
Thomas and Gary Wood- a birdie on the 16th, Leish-
land. man shoved his drive so far
The first round of the new right on the 17th that it ran
year delivered a little bit of into the bushes. He tried to
everything. Kevin Tway plays his shot from the second tee during the first round of the Tournament of Champi- whack it out and reached
Bryson DeChambeau il- ons golf event, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2019, at Kapalua Plantation Course in Kapalua, Hawaii. only the rough and wound
lustrated the new Rules of Associated Press up with a double bogey.
Golf by leaving the pin in DeChambeau had said he
the hole, including his 15- to the right and faced an keeping him out of golf for memories of that week with would take advantage of
foot par putt on the 17th. extremely fast putt with the four months. his father in 2004. It wasn't the new rule that allows the
Patton Kizzire made the first grain and wind. Instead, he Tway, the 30-year-old son much fun for his dad. pin to be left in for putts on
hole-in-one of the year with used a wedge to get some of the former PGA cham- "On one hole, Dad took a the green. He didn't do on
a 7-iron on the par-3 eighth. spin and remove some of pion, is among nine new- huge divot and a centi- every hole, but he gave sci-
Kevin Na was the first play- the break in the putt, and comers to Kapalua in the pede had come up from entific thought to when he
er to withdraw in 2019, end- it left him a short birdie putt 34-man field. He hit his tee the ground," Tway said. did.
ing his week in paradise for a 67. shot on the par-3 second "And he went to flick it "I feel like I maximized my
because of an injury to "First round of the year, hole to 2 feet, followed that away and it stung him, and potential on that," De-
his pinky finger. Cameron I'm pretty pleased with it," with a wedge to 10 feet for his finger swelled up to the Chambeau said, and he
Champion hit one of two Johnson said. birdie on the next hole and size of a golf club grip, so pointed to the 16th as an
drives that went 400 yards Rory McIlroy birdied three really never came close to he couldn't play that entire example.
on a course that yielded of his last four holes for a 69 a bogey. week. He just watched me "It's kind of blowing down-
175 shots of 300 yards or in his first competitive round His only trouble was the day play the course." wind, 5 percent slope,
more. on the Plantation course. before, when an ear and si- Tway went back to school straight down hill, you want
Not so new? Johnson in the "I think anything in the 60s nus infection caused him to in Edmond, Oklahoma, and that pin to help," he said.
hunt again. today was a good start," he withdraw after five holes of his dad recovered in time "So that's what I did and
Johnson, the defending said. the pro-am because of diz- to play the tournament. utilized it to my advantage.
champion and two-time Brooks Koepka would have ziness that made him feel He was 5-foot-7 and bare- So I felt like for the most part
winner at Kapalua, has taken that. Instead, the "like I was walking on a wa- ly 120 pounds back then. I needed the pin to be in
never shot over par in 32 PGA Tour player of the year ter bed." Now at 6-foot-3, the same and it went in and it was a
rounds since coming here had five bogeys and a dou- There were no issues on frame as his father, Tway is very nice help."
for the first time 10 years ble bogey on his way to a Thursday. The Oklahoma hopeful that is good start He shot a 69, but that there
ago. He showed his expe- 76, two shots better than his State alum has seen this might allow him to become was even better evidence
rience on the par-5 18th, start last year when he had tournament only on TV, only the fourth player to win in his corner. He led the field
when he missed the green a wrist injury that wound up though he still had good Kapalua in his debut since in putting on Thursday.q