SHIMA, Japan — Morgan Pressel shot a 5-under 67 Friday to lead the Mizuno Classic by one stroke after the first round.

Pressel, who hasn’t won on the LPGA Tour since 2008, had five birdies at the Kintetsu Kashikojima Country Club.

“It was tough out there with the winds. Especially early, some of those holes played really tough,” Pressel said. “I didn’t get myself in a lot of trouble and when I did I made a good putt for par. I definitely putted well today and I think that’s why I ended up at 5 under.”

Laura Davies of Britain and Chella Choi of South Korea were in second spot at 4 under.

Kotono Kozuma of Japan was a stroke further back after a 69 and in a four-way tie with South Koreans Ilhee Lee and Mi Hyang Lee and Pornanong Phatlam of Thailand.

Stacy Lewis of the United States, who won here in 2012, shot a 70 and was in a group of eight players that included Karie Webb of Australia and Sakura Yokomine of Japan.

Lewis, second in the Rolex rankings behind Inbee Park of South Korea, offset bogeys on Nos. 9 and 14 with four birdies.

Park is taking a week off before resuming play next week in Mexico at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational.

Defending champion Teresa Lu of Taiwan struggled with her game and opened with a 73. Jiyai Shin of South Korea, who won here in 2010 and 2008, had a 71.

SHANGHAI, China — The HSBC Champions has a familiar look to Graeme McDowell, with a few exceptions.

He goes into the weekend at Sheshan International in contention for a World Golf Championship, with Ian Poulter and a big-hitting American alongside. Only, now, the American is Masters champion Bubba Watson – not Dustin Johnson, who overpowered the course on his way to victory last year.

And at least this time, McDowell has the lead.

McDowell leaned on a hot putter to carry him to another 5-under 67 on Friday. That gave him a three-shot lead over Poulter, with Watson and Hiroshi Iwata of Japan right behind.

Tournament organizers might be missing the presence of Johnson, the defending champion who is on a “voluntary leave” for what he described as personal challenges. Just don’t count McDowell among them, especially not the way Johnson set the tournament record at 24-under 264.

“He looked unbeatable last year the way he played this golf course,” McDowell said. “But we’ve got a fairly decent replacement in Bubba, who in his own way has got the same kind of talents as Dustin, the way he drives it and the short game. In many ways, it’s a very similar scenario _ myself and Poults against the long-hitting American.”

McDowell saved par when he had to and strung together back-to-back birdies early and late in his round to reach 10-under 134.

Poulter and Watson showed that a deficit can be made up quickly, particularly on the dynamic finishing holes at Sheshan International.

Watson was seven shots behind when he made birdie on the par-5 14th, and he was just getting warmed up. He blasted a drive just through the end of the fairway on the 487-yard 15th hole and hit gap wedge to 8 feet for birdie on the 15th. He chipped in twice for birdie on the next two holes, and had a simple up-and-down on the par-5 18th to end his round of 67 with five straight birdies.

“Hit some good shots but couldn’t make some putts. Hit some bad shots and made some putts,” Watson said. “It was a great last five holes.”

Poulter was five shots out of the lead when he birdied four of the last five holes – he made par on the par-3 17th – for a 67 that put him three shots back.

“Probably the best I’ve played all year, which is very exciting,” Poulter said. “It was a little frustrating the first 13 holes that I was missing chances, but four birdies in the last five holes … chances started to go in at the end and I’m very happy.”

Rickie Fowler opened with 14 straight pars, added a few birdies and shot 70 to reach 5-under 139, along with Tim Clark (70), Jonas Blixt (68) and Kevin Na (68).

McDowell is not one to complain about a pair of 67s on any golf course, though they were different. He only missed one fairway in the opening round, which set up plenty of birdie chances. He had to scramble more on Friday, though at least he could rely on his putter.

“I have to improve tee-to-green to have a chance on Sunday,” McDowell said. “I’m putting great _ I love these greens. I’ve just got to keep doing it. I have to go out there tomorrow and not think about making mistakes. Just have to keep the pedal down, execute my game plan, and give myself a chance to win on the back nine on Sunday.”

Adam Scott might have cost himself a chance with a wild round.

The Australian opened with four birdies through seven holes to get within two shots of McDowell. A poor tee shot changed everything. He pulled his drive into a water hazard on the 603-yard eighth hole and had to drop at one of the forward tees. Trying to reach the green in two, he came up just short of the creek in front of the green, and then his pitch from gnarly rough didn’t quite reach the green and rolled into the hazard next to a large rock.

Scott decided to take a penalty drop from the other side of the creek and made a quadruple-bogey 9, wiping out those four birdies. He followed with an approach into the water on the ninth for a double bogey, and made eagle on the back nine to salvage a 72. He still was eight shots behind.

Poulter liked his position much better.

“We’ve got 36 holes to go. You’ve got 36 potential birdies,” he said. “So three shots is pretty close.”

SHANGHAI – Patrick Reed hasn’t received this much attention since he pressed his finger to his lips in Scotland to quiet the Ryder Cup crowd. This time it was his own mouth that got the 24-year-old American into trouble when he berated himself with swearing and a gay slur.

Reed apologized on Friday for his outburst at the HSBC Champions, which was captured on live television during the opening round of a World Golf Championship.

“Yesterday, I made a stupid error,” Reed said. “Sorry for definitely the words that I said and everything that went on. Never should have happened. Unfortunately, it happened to me and all I can do is just learn from it and move on, hopefully continue playing well and keep giving fans something to watch.”

He was on his 10th hole (No. 1) at Sheshan International in the opening round when he missed a 5-foot putt. Microphones caught him using the F-word twice and capping it off with another F-word – the gay slur – in a fit of rage over his three-putt bogey.

Golf Channel analyst Frank Nobilo immediately apologized to viewers. Reed didn’t even remember what he said until he was informed after the round, and the video clip began making its way across the Internet. Among those he sought out for advice was Bubba Watson, of all people.

Microphones also caught Watson using the F-word in the second round of the U.S. PGA Championship in August.

“He came to me last night and said that, `Hey, I did something bad,'” Watson said. “He showed me the clip. I said, `Yeah, that’s not good.’ That’s all I could say. … It’s sad it comes out, but just like I said before in my own personal problems, that’s how you learn from it. That’s how you become a better man, and that’s what I told him. `Your daughter is not old enough yet, but when your daughter gets older, you don’t want to speak out like that.’ And it’s the same thing with me.”

It was the second time in two weeks that a public figure in golf was swept up in emotion and wound up using offensive terms. Former PGA of America president Ted Bishop directed his “Lil Girl” comment at Ian Poulter.

“I’ve done it in the past. It’s difficult, isn’t it?” Poulter said. “The microphone is there, live TV, its broadcast around the world. We all make mistakes.”

Reed huddled with his handlers for about five minutes after his 73 on Friday before facing the media, answering every question with a mea culpa.

“It’s something not to be proud of, and something that you definitely can’t have happen,” Reed said. “Unfortunately, it got the best of me yesterday, and all I can do is not let it happen again.”

Players who use foul language are usually fined, although the PGA Tour does not disclose its disciplinary action. Graeme McDowell said he has received a text message from his mother when microphones catch him swearing.

“My mom is under some illusion that I don’t swear,” he said. “Like I say, golf is a four-letter word. It’s a frustrating sport. Yes, we use language that we shouldn’t on national television, but that’s the same in any sport.”

Reed’s outburst was more about the words, especially the gay slur, than the volume. He was playing with McDowell and Billy Horschel, and neither of them even heard it. Reed said it as he walked briskly to the hole after missing the short putt.

It happened about 1 p.m. on Thursday in China. McDowell didn’t know about it until he was watching the news Friday morning.

“Yes, he shouldn’t have said it. But is he unfairly dragged across the coals? Who knows? You could argue both sides of the story,” McDowell said. “I don’t have an opinion on it. Guys say things all the time out here.”

Reed blamed his choice of words on his passion, and he is not short on that. He first drew attention to himself at another World Golf Championship at Doral where he said he belonged among the top five players in the world after winning.

“The passion I have for the game is never going to change,” Reed said. “And the drive to play well and win is never going to change. It’s just if I’m ever going to get upset at myself, especially after a Ryder Cup and at the level of golf I’m playing nowadays, you can’t have outbursts. Unfortunately, I did, and happened to be on camera.”

The PGA Tour issued a statement that said its policy for conduct unbecoming a professional “prohibits the use of obscene language on the golf course.” The tour added it would handle the matter internally.

JACKSON, Miss.  — Sebastian Cappelen narrowly missed earning his PGA Tour card last season and needed a sponsor exemption to make the field in the Sanderson Farms Championship.

The 24-year-old from Denmark is making the most of his opportunity.

Cappelen shot a 7-under 65 on Thursday in his first PGA Tour round to take the lead at the Country Club of Jackson. He opened with a bogey before making eight birdies to take a two-shot lead over Robert Streb, Scott Pinckney and Canada’s Nick Taylor.

“I couldn’t be happier, to be honest,” Cappelen said. “Obviously, I came here just trying to get a new experience and get a feel of how it feels like to play on the real tour, and I had a great time out there today. Hit a lot of good shots.”

Cappelen was an All-American in college at Arkansas. He won the Air Capital Classic in June on the Web.com Tour.

He was in good position to earn his PGA Tour card, but a poor performance in the final regular-season Web.com Tour event dropped him to 26th place on the money list – one spot shy of the top 25 finish needed to make the PGA Tour.

“I mean, obviously, it’s a heartbreaker being so close and then not getting it,” Cappelen said. “So getting a chance here where I felt like I should been, it’s everything. I couldn’t thank the sponsors here more for what they’ve done.”

Cappelen said he had some nerves before the round, but the early bogey was a sobering moment.

“That’s usually how it is for me when I have a good round,” Cappelen said. “I usually start with a bogey on the first hole, and then just kind of like, `OK, I’ve got to get going.'”

Sebastian Cappelen (Getty Images)

Play was suspended because of darkness with 15 players unable to finish.

The tournament is being played at the 7,354-yard Country Club of Jackson, a course about 10 miles south of Annandale Country Club, where the tournament was held for 19 years.

Overnight rain made for a soft course early, but players said it firmed up as the day progressed.

There were 13 players within three shots of the lead including Canadian Nick Taylor, who finished the day in a three-way tie for second place. The Abbotsford, B.C. native and former Team Canada member recorded five birdies en route to a 5-under 67.

“I’m definitely happy with it (his round),” said Taylor. ” It was playing cold this morning, playing long.  Some of the par‑5s weren’t as reachable, but I took advantage of those luckily.  I was putting really well and gave myself a chance to make birdies, so I’m happy with that.”

Fellow Canadians David Hearn and Adam Hadwin also had solid first rounds.

Hearn carded a 3-under 69 after making a bogey on his final hole of the day, while Hadwin finished at -2 after an adventurous round that included four birdies and a double bogey on the back nine.

Roger Sloan aced the fourth hole, a 181-yard par 3, but struggled to carry his momentum over to the back nine.  The 27-year-old had two double bogeys on the day and was 2-over par when play was suspended.

TORONTO – Special Olympics Canada has announced the Canadian roster who will represent Canada’s golf team at the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games next summer in Los Angeles, Calif.

Comprising Canada’s golf contingent will be Kyle Grummett (B.C.), Danny Peaslee (Man.), Tess Trojan (Ont.), Lorrine Russell (Ont.) and Kyle Koopman (Ont.).

In all, the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games will feature 7,000 athletes and 3,000 coaches from over 177 countries, alongside 30,000 volunteers. Athletes will be competing in 26 different sports over 9 days at venues throughout Los Angeles, including the University of Southern California and the University of California, Los Angeles. The 2015 World Summer Games will be the largest event held in Los Angeles since the 1984 Olympic Summer Games.

“We are thrilled with the enthusiasm and incredible athleticism of Team Canada’s athletes,” said Sharon Bollenbach, CEO of Special Olympics Canada. “The 2015 World Games in Los Angeles will be an amazing opportunity for our athletes to show the world their exceptional abilities, determination and drive. I am excited to see them compete and put Canada in the spotlight!”

Team Canada consists of 115 athletes, 32 coaches, 11 mission staff, 3 team managers and 1 Chef de Mission who will be traveling to Los Angeles next July, with 85 of the athletes attending their first World Games. Athletes on Team Canada will be competing in basketball, bocce and golf for the first time on the world stage, in addition to soccer, athletics, swimming, 10-pin bowling, powerlifting, rhythmic gymnastics and softball. Athletes competed in their Provincial or Territorial Games in 2013, and National Games, which took place in Vancouver this past July.

“This is a very exciting time for Team Canada. We get to welcome an amazing group of athletes and coaches onto our team and begin our focused training and preparation for World Games,” said Chef de Mission for Team Canada, Johnny Byrne. “Every new member has earned their position on this team through hard work, commitment and their performance at National Games. The next ten months will be a rewarding journey for us as we prepare to achieve excellence in sport and as ambassadors for Canada at the World Games in Los Angeles.”

Special Olympics Canada will offer training camps for athletes attending Games as part of the National Team Program, a formalized approach to training and preparation for Special Olympics World Games. Athletes, coaches and mission staff will have access to quality training, coaching and competitive opportunities to support optimal performance as well as a positive experience as a member of the National Team.

Kyle Grummett (Special Olympics BC)

Adams Golf new Tight Lies products are now available at retailers across Canada.

Featuring new Ghost Slot Technology that masks the crown slot on the club face in addition to the club’s signature “upside-down head shape”, the Tight Lies hybrids and fairway woods provide both performance and forgiveness from any lie.

Adams is also introducing its new Tight Lies Titanium fairway wood.

The combination of a titanium face with a stainless steel sole has resulted in the lowest CG ever for an Adams fairway wood that has optimized the USGA limit on spring-like effect.

Tight Lies fairway woods (14º, 16º, 22º) and hybrids (17º, 19º, 22º, 25º, 28º) come stock with KuroKage graphite shafts by Mitsubishi Rayon, while the Tight Lies Titanium fairway woods (13.5º, 15º, 18º) come with Mitsubishi Bassara Eagle Series graphite shafts.

Darryl James is making some noise at the Champions Tour Regional Qualifier in Murrieta, Cal.

The 1994 Canadian Tour — now PGA Tour of Canada — Rookie of the Year followed up a three-under-par 69 performance in rd. 1 with a score of even par 72 Wednesday to remain in a three-way tie atop the leaderboard.

James tees off with fellow leaders Patrick Burke and Jerry Smith at 9:40 AM PT at Bear Creek Golf Club.

March Hurtubise and Mark Rypien have struggled this week on the same track. Hurtubise is currently in 35^th place with an accumulative score of 161 (85, 76), while the former Super Bowl MVP sits in the 41^st spot after carding consecutive 83s.

At the regional qualifiers in Florida, Remi Bouchard fell to 24^th place after a promising start in rd. 1 with a score of 75 on Wednesday.

Fellow Quebec natives Michael Dagenais and J.C. LeBlanc have not had much success through the first two rounds at Orange County National. Dagenais is currently tied for 52^nd spot with American Bill Breen, while LeBlanc dropped to 68^th after shooting an 80 in Rd. 2.

Ken Tarling, Canada’s only competitor at the qualifier in Texas, has shown poise and consistency this week at Woodforest Golf Club at Fish Creek. His rounds of 72 and 73 have placed him into a four-way tie for 13^th, only eight shots behind leader Cesar Monasterio of Argentina.

There are a limited number of spots available for the final qualifying stage, which begins on November 17at Panther Lake Golf Course in Winter Garden, Fla. 20 spots will be awarded this week at the regional qualifier in Florida with only a combined 29 spots up for grabs at the tournaments in Texas (15) and California (14).

Despite struggling in Rd. 3 of the Champions Tour regional qualifier in Florida, Darryl James still finds himself well within the cut line.

The four-time Alberta Amateur Champion carded a 9-over par 81 on Thursday, but rounds of 69 and 72 earlier in the week have given James some cushion room.

He is currently in a four-way tie for fifth place with Kevin Burton, Doug Rohrbaugh and Fran Quinn.

Two other Canadians also have a solid chance at advancing to the final stage, scheduled to get underway on November 18.

Quebec’s Remi Bouchard (T-30) continued his consistent play at Orange County National with a 74 in Rd. 3, while Sanford, Ontario’s Ken Tarling (T18), who also shot a 74 on Thursday, sits one stroke back of advancing at the qualifier in Texas.

It has not been a successful week for Mark Rypien (35th in Cal.), Marc Hurtubise (40th in Cal.), J.C. LeBlanc (68th in Fla.) and Michael Dagenais (T-59 in Fla.).  It is unlikely that they will advance to the final stage, but anything can happen on day four of a qualifying tournament.

SHANGHAI — Graeme McDowell typically looks at the leaderboard more often at the start of a tournament. It gives him a sense of how the course is playing and what score he might need to contend at the finish.

There was no need to look Thursday in the HSBC Champions.

McDowell noticed ankle-deep rough at Sheshan International and fairways not as wide as usual. He felt firm greens and saw trees jostling in stiff wind. More than anything, he kept looking at all the birdies that filled his scorecard.

McDowell already had seven birdies when he finished his 12th hole, and a couple of loose mistakes at the end of the opening round didn’t diminish his satisfaction. He opened with a 5-under 67 on a tough day in Shanghai to build a two-shot lead.

“No, I didn’t need a leaderboard to let me know that 7 under through 12 is fairly strong,” McDowell said. “Gauging what’s a good score can be a good thing maybe when you’re not going well. But it might not be a great thing if you’re taking it deep and the rest of them are 3-under par and you’re thinking, `Whoa, this is a very good score.'”

That’s not what slowed him. Trouble was lurking everywhere, and not even McDowell was immune.

Rickie Fowler also started quickly with three birdies in his opening five holes, only to spend the rest of the round trading birdies with bogeys. He wound up with a 69, along with U.S. Open champion Martin Kaymer, Brandt Snedeker, Chris Kirk, Tim Clark and Tommy Fleetwood.

Strong wind added to the demanding conditions.

Jordan Spieth began his new PGA Tour season with two straight bogeys and had to save par with a long bunker shot on his third hole. He scratched his way back and wound up in a large group at 70 that featured Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Adam Scott and Henrik Stenson, who made bogey from the bunker on his final hole.

It didn’t take much for players to stumble. FedEx Cup champion Billy Horschel made two double bogeys, only one birdie and shot an 80.

“This is a top event – some of the best players in the world, probably the best field you’re going to get in Asia, and you don’t want it to be a pushover,” Fowler said. “You want a good, solid test. And it’s showing that.”

Only 27 players in the 78-man field broke par, compared with 37 players under par on the first day last year when the winning score was 24-under 264. McDowell said he wouldn’t be surprised to see something around 10 or 12 under win, even if the wind lets up.

McDowell is the only player this year to finish in the top 10 at all the World Golf Championships, and while he hasn’t captured a WGC title, Sheshan International would seem to favor him more than the others. Thursday was his 10th consecutive round in the 60s on this course.

“A big key to this golf course is driving the ball well. I drove it very well today,” McDowell said.

The exception was on the 603-yard eighth hole, playing with the wind. McDowell hit a 3-wood to avoid the bunker on the right side of the fairway, and he put it in the deep grass for the first time all day. He could only manage an 8-iron out of the rough and still had 215 yards over the creek fronting the green. McDowell pulled that left of the green and failed to get up and down.

No complaints. He did not forget the 20-foot birdie putt he made on No. 14, or the 45-foot putt he holed across the green at the 17th, or the 25-foot birdie on No. 3. And then there was his drive on the 288-yard 16th, a perfect yardage to go with a perfect swing that gave him a two-putt from 15 feet for birdie.

“There were some tricky holes on the front nine,” McDowell said. “I made a couple of putts I should have in the first 12 holes, and then I made a couple of bogeys that I shouldn’t have coming in. All in all, I think 5 under was a fair representation of my round.”

Canada’s Graham DeLaet had to withdraw after a 45 on nine holes because of a neck injury. The Canadian also withdrew from Malaysia last week with a sore neck.

SHANGHAI — European Tour chief executive George O’Grady is stepping down after 10 years, saying it was a good time to leave after another overwhelming Ryder Cup success and enough “green shoots of recovery” across the tour.

O’Grady asked the board to start looking for a successor, the tour said Wednesday in a statement.

It was not clear when he would officially step down. O’Grady has agreed to stay on until the European Tour board finds a replacement, and then sufficient time for his successor to make a smooth transition.

O’Grady, who has been with the tour in some capacity for more than 40 years, will become president of international relations, in which he will represent the European Tour when golf returns to the Olympics in 2016.

“The European Tour and its players are admired throughout the world of golf, and George has played a key part in building global relationships and developing the tour,” said David Williams, chairman of the tour.

O’Grady became only the third chief executive of the tour in January 2005, following 30 years of Ken Schofield and John Jacobs, who oversaw the tour’s formative years from 1971-74.

“In the aftermath of what I believe to have been the best presented Ryder Cup since my first involvement in the contest at Royal Lytham in 1977, I felt this was the right time to ask the board to begin the search for my successor,” O’Grady said.

“It is my firm belief that, coming toward the end of what has been another incredibly successful season, we are now seeing the green shoots of recovery across Europe, and I am pleased that this coincides with all our building blocks, in terms of key television and sponsorship contracts, being in place.”

It has not always been smooth sailing.

A year after O’Grady was on the job, PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem announced The Players Championship would move from March to May, right about the time European events returned to the continent. The U.S. tour also launched the FedEx Cup, a $35 million bonus pool in August and September which became even more attractive to European-born players.

With more players heading for America, the European Tour bumped up the required number of events for its members from 11 to 13 to beef up support.

A critical point was in 2006 at La Costa for the Match Play Championship, where O’Grady assembled two dozen European players in the field for a meeting to allow them to share ideas on keeping the European circuit strong. He said the central message that night was that the “European Tour is worth fighting for.”

A few years later, O’Grady oversaw the new Race to Dubai that provided a year-end bonus to European players.

And with the economy struggling in Europe, the tour adjusted its schedule to become the most global tour in golf. It was the first to tap heavily into the Asia markets – particularly China – and holds events in the Middle East, along with South Africa.

“He’s had a good reign,” Justin Rose said. “There’s no doubt there has been challenges. The European Tour and the economy and the markets in which the European Tour has been going is difficult.”