Kuala Lumpur: Ryan Moore made light of a demanding 9,000 mile trip from Las Vegas to Kuala Lumpur to fire a first round nine-under 63 in the PGA Tour’s CIMB Classic yesterday, while Phil Mickelson endured a frustrating day and wound up eight shots off the pace.
American Moore leads former US PGA Champion Keegan Bradley (65) by two and Spain’s Sergio Garcia (66) by three at the $7m event at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.
Moore, who made the gruelling trip to Malaysia after playing in Las Vegas last weekend, opened his round with a bogey before running off 10 birdies at the 78-man elite field tournament, co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour, to leave him thinking of a third Tour win. “Obviously it’s a great score. It’s a great way to start a week,” the 31-year-old told reporters.
“Really the last time I had a good round like this to start, I won the tournament. That was in Vegas last year,” he added, referring to his victory at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.
Bradley enjoyed a welcome return to action after a two-week break by firing a bogey-free round, which was matched by European Ryder Cup winner Garcia.
Reuters
