ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. -Robert Streb hasn’t seen many early indications of a happy ending throughout his career.

That included his first PGA Tour victory.

He started the McGladrey Classic with a tee shot he hooked into a bush, leading to a double bogey, and spent the next two days worried only about making the cut. Five shots behind going into the final round Sunday, he drove into a bunker on the opening hole and made bogey. Even after he made five birdies to get back in the mix, he three-putted the 13th for bogey to fall four shots behind with five holes to play.

“And at that point I was like, `Well, I’ll just see how many birdies I can try to make on the way in,'” Streb said. “And I got on a pretty nice little run.”

Streb ran off four straight birdies, closed with a 7-under 63, and then waited 90 minutes to see if it would hold up. He got into a three-way playoff at Sea Island with Brendon de Jonge and Will MacKenzie, and won on the second extra hole with the most significant shot of his young career.

He hit 8-iron at the par-3 17th that covered the flag and settled 4 feet behind the hole for his 10th birdie of the day.

“Very thrilled,” Streb said, mainly because winning had not sunk in.

The 27-year-old from Oklahoma has never played in a major. Now he’s going to the Masters in April, the PGA Championship next August, and the option to play events for only the top tier players, from Kapalua to Bay Hill to Memorial to Colonial.

“It’s pretty exciting,” Streb said. “I don’t have any emotions yet, but very thrilled.”

De Jonge had his best chance yet to win for the first time, and the only consolation was not having to look back at anything he did wrong. His lone regret was a pedestrian bunker shot on the par-5 15th and failing to make an 8-foot birdie putt. He closed with a 65. De Jonge hit his tee shot on the 17th in the playoff to about 30 feet left of the pin, though that became an even longer putt when Streb stuffed his 8-iron.

“What can you do? He hit a great shot,” de Jonge said. “And as I said, it’s nice for him to have a birdie. It’s a good way to win the tournament.”

MacKenzie, who started the final round tied for the lead, closed with a 68. He also failed to birdie the 15th that would have given him the outright lead, and then he was happy to just get into the playoff. He three-putted from 80 feet for bogey on the 16th to fall out of the lead. He answered with a 5-foot birdie on the 17th, and then he had to lag a putt from 80 just short of the 18th green to get into the playoff.

But it didn’t last long. MacKenzie found a bunker right of the 18th green on the first extra hole, blasted out to 30 feet and made bogey.

Streb had to made about a 4-footer for par in the playoff just to keep going. He was nervous over that putt, and the putt for the win. But he came through with a win that not even he would imagined when he walked off the 13th hole with a bogey.

It’s been like that his whole career.

Streb grew up at Oak Tree, though he had to leave home for college. Oklahoma didn’t have a scholarship to offer – Streb always wanted to be a Sooner. And he didn’t think he was good enough for Oklahoma State except to try to walk on.

Instead, he went to Kansas State. He met his wife, Maggie, who is expecting their first child (a girl) in February. He got his degree in marketing in case golf didn’t work out. And then he hit the minor leagues with great resolve.

Streb got to the PGA Tour after three years, and then narrowly lost his card. He failed to get it back for last season, though he took advantage of his limited starts by finishing second in New Orleans. Later in the season, he figured he was headed to the third round of the FedEx Cup playoffs until Jason Day made a birdie on the last hole at the TPC Boston that bumped Streb out of the top 70.

He has been motivated to get better every step of the way.

“I guess it kind of keeps you hungry,” he said. “You’re obviously not going to achieve all your goals right from the get go. Well, at least I didn’t.”

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Will MacKenzie figured a good shot had turned out badly.

His 8-iron on the par-3 sixth hole Saturday in the McGladrey Classic headed for the flag, and he could hear it strike the pin. If the four people around the green were clapping, he couldn’t hear them. MacKenzie simply walked back to his bag and handed his club to the caddie.

“I figured it had ricocheted off,” MacKenzie said.

Except that he couldn’t find the ball anywhere on or around the green. The mystery was solved when one of the four men indicated it was in the hole.

“Most anti-climactic hole-in-one I ever had,” he said.

That shot, along with a 45-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole at Sea Island, carried golf’s free spirit to a 5-under 65 and a share of the lead with Andrew Svoboda going into the final round. Svoboda rallied from a careless double bogey by making three birdies on the last six holes for a 66.

They were at 12-under 198.

As aces go, this was a strange one for MacKenzie.

“It was just the most boring hole-in-one ever,” he said.

Russell Henley, the 36-hole leader, was one shot behind after another solid day, except for one shot. He pulled his approach into the water on the par-5 15th hole and made bogey on the easiest hole on the Seaside course. Henley had a 68.

Stewart Cink, winless since beating Tom Watson in a playoff at Turnberry five years ago, made eight birdies in his round of 63. Defending champion Chris Kirk is progressively getting better with rounds of 68-67-66. They were part of a large group at 201, just three shots behind.

Nine players were within four shots of the lead.

Four players had at least a share of the lead at one point. Henley fell back with his bogey on the 15th. Fabian Gomez of Argentina was tied for the lead until he stumbled at the finish. He three-putted from 30 feet on the 16th and from 40 feet on the 17th, and then failed to get up-and-down from short of the 18th. He shot 68 and was in the group three shots out of the lead.

Henley and Kirk are playing for the first time since the Tour Championship on Sept. 14. Neither was sure what to expect this week, and even though Henley didn’t finish as strong as he would like, he was happy with where he was.

So was Kirk, who had five birdies and an eagle to counter his mistakes.

Kirk holed out with a sand wedge from 115 yards on the eighth hole, only to bogey the next two holes. He finished strong and still had a chance to defend his title.

“I’ve managed to put three pretty solid rounds together, and hopefully I can give them a little bit of a run tomorrow,” Kirk said.

MacKenzie also had his moments. He didn’t take the lead until a birdie on the 16th hole, only to lose focus on the next hole. He hit 5-iron, which was way too much club for the par-3 17th, and he was lucky to at least have a shot out of the wire grass. He chopped that over the green, got the next shot down to 7 feet and holed that for a bogey.

And to cap it off, he made a long birdie across the 18th green to catch Svoboda, who had to save par with a tough chip from the right side of the green.

“I was a little jumpy,” MacKenzie said. “So it was huge to make that bomb.”

Even so, it was the ace that left him shaking his head. MacKenzie said he now has three aces on the PGA Tour, though nothing stranger than his hole-in-one Saturday – mainly because he had no idea where the ball wound up.

“Finally, there was this random guy over there, like one of the four guys clapping earlier,” he said. “They were like, `Yeah, it went in. Didn’t you hear us clap?’ I was like, `Thanks, man. You guys are low-key here.’ They’re used to seeing great shots. They’re used to your Matt Kuchars and the guys, studs. I made a hole-in-one. It means nothing other than it was a 1 on the scorecard.”

But it put him into the last group Sunday with a chance to win a PGA Tour event for the first time since MacKenzie won the Viking Classic six years ago.

The 54-hole cut was at 1-under 209, and it eliminated 17 players.  Canadians Adam Hadwin (73) and Nick Taylor (75) failed to advance to the final round because more more than 78 golfers advanced past the 36 hole cut.

Among those making it to Sunday was tournament host Davis Love III, who shot 70.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Russell Henley has a reminder on his phone that goes off every day at noon to tell him he’s the best putter in the world. He didn’t need one Friday in the McGladrey Classic.

Playing for the first time since Sept. 14 at the Tour Championship, Henley one-putted 10 greens on the Seaside course at Sea Island and tied his personal best on the PGA Tour with a 7-under 63 to take a one-shot lead into the weekend.

The 25-year-old from Georgia would not have seen that coming.

When he teed off in the morning chill, he opened with a bogey on No. 10 and was simply trying to keep warm. The only 63 on his mind was whether the temperature would get that high. It did, and he got hot with his best club in the bag – the putter.

“After the first hole, I was just thinking, `All right, you’ve got to hang in there and just be patient and hopefully get something going.’ And I did,” Henley said.

He managed to turn a horrible drive into a birdie on the 18th hole at the turn, the start of six birdies over his last 10 holes. That put him at 9-under 131, one shot ahead of Brendon de Jonge (64), Brian Harman (67) and Andrew Svoboda (66).

“That kept the round going, and then I felt pretty good with my putter,” Henley said.

Will MacKenzie (68), Mark Wilson (66) and Fabian Gomez (66) were two shots behind. Defending champion Chris Kirk hit his first drive of the round into a hazard and made double bogey, but he recovered with five birdies for a 67 that left him only four shots back.

Henley has won in each of his first two years on the PGA Tour, and it was that inaugural win at the Sony Open that brought so much attention to his putting. He’s not suggesting he is the best putter in golf, though it doesn’t hurt to tell himself that every day.

“I would say I’m a great putter. And I think if you want to be a great putter, you have to believe that you’re a great putter,” Henley said.

That’s why he added the phone reminder.

“I try to just believe in my putting and enjoy putting, and people always tells me I’m a great putter, so it’s pretty easy to keep the confidence going when you’re doing that,” Henley said. “I just wish they would say that about the rest of my game.”

He doubts they will ever say that about his acoustic guitar.

Henley has been fiddling with a guitar since he was a teenager, spent more time with it in college and when he turned pro, and now is at least good enough to fulfill a fantasy. During a friendly bet he won with country singer Darius Rucker, he was able to go on stage with him Wednesday night at Sea Island during a concert and play “Wagon Wheel,” even singing with him on the chorus.

“I still can’t believe it actually happened,” Henley said.

More than enjoying just his putting, it’s key for Henley to enjoy his golf. He did well enough after winning the Honda Classic to advance to the Tour Championship, meaning a hectic end to last season. Henley was worn out and needed the five-week break.

“I decided to rest and take a few weeks off until I got the itch,” Henley said. “I’m kind of a worthless golfer if I’m not excited to play. And I feel like I’m excited to play again.”

Canada’s Nick Taylor carded a 4-under 66 Friday to get to 1-under for the championship (73-66–139) and make the cut on the number at 1-under.

Adam Hadwin also sat at 1-under (70-69) thru 36 holes to squeeze by the cut line.

Roger Sloan carded a 4-over 74 (70-74–144) and missed the cut in his debut as a PGA Tour rookie.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Erik Compton is happy with where he is in golf, and he’s not referring to his 5-under 65 on Thursday for a share of the lead in the McGladrey Classic.

A return to Sea Island provides an occasion to take stock of how far he has come in the last 13 years, and what Compton refers to as the “hurdles” he didn’t anticipate.

There’s a medical term for these hurdles. It’s called a second heart transplant.

“I’m almost 35 years old. I’ve had a good career in golf, really,” he said. “Even though I’ve had some time off, I’ve been able to support myself and have a good life.”

Compton remarkably earned a PGA Tour card just four years after he drove himself to the hospital while suffering a heart attack, dodging death until he received a second transplant. He now is in his fourth straight season on golf’s toughest circuit, and he has shown steady improvement.

The next step is to win, and Compton has been around long enough not to get overly excited about a good start.

He opened with a pair of birdies in the morning chill on the Seaside Course at Sea Island, dropped only one shot and joined Sea Island resident Brian Harman, Michael Thompson and Will MacKenzie in the lead.

Chesson Hadley was among six players one shot behind. More than half of the field was at par or better on a gentle day for scoring.

“I expect I should win this year. That’s a goal of mine,” Compton said. “It’s always been a goal, but I think every time I get on the course it becomes more of a realistic expectation.”

Compton first played Sea Island when he competed in the SEC Championship while at Georgia in 2001. A few months later, Compton played in the Walker Cup at nearby Ocean Forest.

The first hurdle when he turned pro was realizing that “everybody out here is really, really, really, really good.” The more serious hurdle was his heart.

Compton had his first transplant when he 12 because of cardiomyopathy, an enlarging of the heart that hinders its ability to pump blood. He had his second in 2008 and ended that year by making the cut in the final PGA Tour event.

His story never gets old, and Compton is happy to tell it, especially if that means bringing attention to the “Donate Life America” campaign. He prefers to look ahead, at the next shot, the next tournament, trying to get the most he can out of his game, just like the guys he is trying to beat.

Compton has reached the FedEx Cup playoff the last two seasons and advanced to the third round at the BMW Championship last month. In the short offseason, he spent more time in the gym trying to get stronger at the recommendation of former Miami Heat guard Ray Allen.

“I went to the gym with him a couple of times and played him for some money games in Miami,” Compton said. “He was just trying to motivate me to get in better shape. So I worked out a little bit. And then just played five or six rounds with him before I went back on the road.”

Easy money? Compton smiled.

“I got him five ways one day,” he said without mentioning a dollar amount.

Compton played on that Walker Cup team with 2009 U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover along with Bryce Molder and D.J. Trahan, who both went on to win on the PGA Tour. The Britain & Ireland team featured former world No. 1 Luke Donald and Graeme McDowell, the U.S. Open champion at Pebble Beach.

Compton’s hopes were not much different from theirs – turn pro, win tournaments.

“I think when I was younger, I had some unrealistic expectations,” he said. “I knew I was a good player. I obviously had some hurdles that I had to deal with in front of me, which I didn’t see coming. I didn’t know I was going to have to deal with that.”

What’s real to him now is being a PGA Tour regular. He’s going to the Masters next year for the first time, courtesy of his runner-up finish in the U.S. Open. That remains his biggest highlight in golf.

What’s next? He’s curious to find out. Compton is learning not to swing so hard to take advantage of his putting stroke.

“I just want to get the ball in play and hit on the green and see where I can go,” he said. “And that’s difficult to do in four days, and it’s proven difficult for a lot of guys who have never won on tour who have great careers. I happen to be one of those guys right now, and I feel like if I can do the things like I did today and get out of my own way, there’s no reason I shouldn’t continue to progress in this game.”

Canadians Adam Hadwin and Roger Sloan opened with even-par 70s and are tied for 59th after the opening round. The other Canadian in the field is Nick Taylor. He carded a 3-over 73 Thursday and is tied for 112th.

LAS VEGAS – Ben Martin made a 45-foot eagle putt to regain the lead and finished with a 20-foot birdie putt for a 3-under 68 and his first PGA Tour victory Sunday in the Shriners Hospital for Children Open.

Martin played his final four holes at the TPC Summerlin in 4-under par, though no shot was more important than the eagle.

Kevin Streelman ran off five birdies in a six-hole stretch to overtake Martin for the lead, and Streelman hit a wedge into 5 feet on the 18th hole. Martin, who led by as many as four shots on the back nine, hit a 6-iron over the water to the back of the green on the par-5 16th.

His eagle putt broke back to the left over the final few feet and dropped in the cup to put Martin back in the lead.

Moments later, Streelman missed his short birdie attempt.

Martin two-putted for par on the 17th, and then rolled in a birdie putt he didn’t need for a two-shot victory. The 27-year-old from South Carolina won in his 56th career start.

“It was an awesome way to finish,” Martin said. “I didn’t feel like I had much going all day. Four under on my last four to cap my first win was just awesome.”

Martin finished at 20-under 264 and returns to the Masters, this time as a pro. He played Augusta National in 2010 as the U.S. Amateur runner-up.

Streelman set a PGA Tour record in June when he closed with seven straight birdies to win the Travelers Championship. He was headed down that path again with a string of birdies until he missed his last putt on the low side of the hole. He closed with a 65.

“I tried not to look at the leaderboard,” Streelman said. “It was kind of like Travelers. I had to make as many (birdies) as possible as quickly as possible.”

Russell Knox, who played in the final group with Martin, took a double bogey on No. 9 to fall back. He made three straight birdies late in the round, and then made a tough par putt on the 18th for a 70 to finish alone in third.

Defending champion Webb Simpson (68), Brooks Koepka (68) and Jimmy Walker (69) tied for fourth, four shots behind.

Martin had a four-shot lead after 10 holes when he pulled his tee shot behind a tree and dropped a shot at the 11th, and Streelman began his run of his birdies. Martin finally answered with a drive that hopped onto the green at the par-4 15th that set up a two-putt birdie, and then he made good on his second straight eagle attempt.

It was a quick turnaround for Martin, who opened the PGA Tour season last week at the Frys.com Open with rounds of 78-79 to miss the cut. He took the lead in Las Vegas with a 62 in the third round to take a two-shot lead into the final round.

Martin said he tried not to look at leaderboards even though “my heart was beating out of my chest.”

“I tried to keep plugging along and let it happen,” he said.

Streelman didn’t look at leaderboards either, although he couldn’t ignore the one behind the 18th green. He heard the cheers from the 16th green as he was lining up his birdie putt on the 18th, not realizing at the time it was Martin making eagle.

“I saw I was 1 up on the 18th green, and then I saw I was 1 down,” Streelman said.

Canadians David Hearn and Adam Hadwin both cracked the top 10.

Hearn tied for 7th at 14-under 270, six shots off the lead.

Hadwin finished tied for 10th at 13-under 271, in part to a final-round 8-under 63.

The other Canadian in the field was Nick Taylor. He tied for 56th at 5-under 279.

This is the third time this calendar year a pair of Canadians finished within the top-10 on the PGA Tour. Graham DeLaet tied for 7th and Brad Fritsch tied for 9th at the RBC Canadian Open at The Royal Montreal Golf Club. The other was the Farmers Insurance Open, where DeLaet tied for 2nd and Fritsch tied for 10th.

Both Hearn and Hadwin were pleased with their performances and took to Twitter following the final round with their comments.

Felt good this week! Excited to get off to a good start….now the glamorous part…a redeye home. Hold on @heathyhearn! #ShrinersOpen

— David Hearn (@HearnDavid) October 20, 2014

I guess sunday is moving day out here! Bogey-free, low round by 2 and done in front of a bunch of family and friends. Couldnt ask for more.

— adam hadwin (@ahadwingolf) October 20, 2014

LAS VEGAS – Ben Martin birdied five straight holes on the back nine Saturday and finished with a 9-under 62 to take a two-stroke lead in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.

Winless in 55 career starts on the PGA Tour, the 27-year-old former Clemson player matched his best score on the tour – set last year in the Zurich Classic – to get to 17-under 196 at TPC Summerlin.

He has the 54-hole lead for the first time on the PGA Tour.

“Just go out tomorrow with the same mindset, head down, and try to keep making birdies,” Martin said.

Martin had four birdies and bogey on the front nine, birdied No. 10 and took the lead with his birdie run on Nos. 13-17.

“I felt it from the first hole (when) I made a 20-footer for birdie,” Martin said. “So I felt confident with my putter and I was getting a lot of looks. I’ve played that stretch of holes well all week, 15 and 16, and that’s really the part of the course that most guys are making their birdies.”

Scotland’s Russell Knox, tied for the second-round lead with Andrew Putnam, was second after a 66.

“Bogey-free on a Saturday is exactly what I wanted,” Knox said. “I knew I was going to make birdies and I’m seeing the lines on the greens really well. I knew if I just limited my mistakes, I was going to be right up there.”

Jimmy Walker also had a 62 to move into a tie for third with Andrew Svoboda at 13 under. Walker won three times last season and played in the Ryder Cup.

“Well, I think I hit a lot of greens and I had a lot of really good looks,” Walker said. “I remember there was a lot of putts that didn’t go in, too, but I hit a lot of close shots and I made some really good putts. It was fun. Hit it good and putted good.”

Svoboda had a 67.

Defending champion Webb Simpson also had a 67 to join Kevin Streelman (63), Brooks Koepka (64) and Scott Piercy (67) at 12 under.

Streelman birdied eight his last 11 holes. Koepka eaged the par-5 ninth and 290-yard, par-4 15th.

Piercy, a former RBC Canadian Open champion, is playing on a major medical extension this season. He had surgery on his right arm in February.

Putnam shot a 73 to drop into a tie for 24th at 8 under. He had six bogeys, four in a six-hole stretch on the back nine.

David Hearn leads the Canadian charge into Sunday’s finale. The Brantford, Ont. native is tied for 9th at 11-under 202, after a third round 66 (70-66-66) that included a hole-out birdie from 99-yards on the par-5 16th hole.

The other two Canadians in the field this week are Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor.

Hadwin is tied for 53rd (67-72-69) and Taylor tied for 61st (71-65-73).

Jarrod Lyle was tied for 42nd at 6 under after a 70. The Australian is making his second PGA Tour start since a recurrence of leukemia some 18 months ago.

LAS VEGAS – Andrew Putnam birdied two of the last three holes Friday for a 6-under 65 and a share of the second-round lead with Russell Knox in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.

Putnam is played his fourth PGA Tour event. He earned his tour card this year through the Web.com Tour.

“It was a good round,” said Putnam, who birdied all three par 5s. “I started off slow, one bogey, but played good out there. I played the par 5s well today, was able to take advantage of those.”

Knox, from Scotland, had a 67 to match Putnam at 10-under 132 at TPC Summerlin. Knox had six birdies and two bogeys – on Nos. 2 and 3 – in the second round.

“I got a bit worried, though, because I was all over the map,” Knox said. “I didn’t feel real good with my swing, and I knew if I just made some pars, eventually something would click. And I made a couple putts, which really settled me down.”

Andrew Svoboda and Tony Finau were a stroke back. Finau shot 65, and Svoboda had a 67.

“I putted really well today,” Svoboda said. “I made some long putts.”

Defending champion Webb Simpson topped the group at 8 under after a 65.

“I just kept it right in front of me,” Simpson said after his bogey-free round. “That’s what I did last year on this golf course. If you keep hitting the fairways, you’re going to have opportunities to make birdie. I made some putts today. Didn’t make many yesterday. All around, just a good, solid day.”

Martin Laird, the 2009 winner who was tied with Stewart Cink for the first-round lead, was in the group at 8 under after a 70. He had a double bogey on the par-4 seventh – his 16th hole of the day.

Spencer Levin, George McNeill, Ben Martin, Bo Van Pelt, Scott Piercy and Wes Roach also were 8 under. Levin and McNeill shot 63 – the best rounds of the week.

Levin birdied seven his last eight holes.

“I was 1 over through three, so to shoot 8 under is pretty cool,” Levin said. “I made a couple nice putts on my 17th and 18th holes, which kind of makes you feel a little better. I really didn’t play that bad, I just didn’t putt well yesterday. I probably played a little better today tee to green, but not much. It’s just the putts went in today.”

McNeill birdied seven of his last 10 holes.

“Obviously, I knew what I had to do,” McNeill said. “I wasn’t trying to really force anything, but fortunately got off to a decent start, and again in the middle of the round kept it going, and then a nice finish birdieing 18.”

Cink followed his opening 64 with a 75 to drop into a tie for 45th at 3 under. He had a quadruple bogey on the par-4 11th – his second hole of day – and made a bogey on the 12th. He also had a bogey on No. 6 and a double bogey on No. 7.

Stuart Appleby went the other direction, rebounding from a 74 with a 64 to move into a tie for 30th at 4 under.

Canada’s Nick Taylor had a bogey-free 65 Friday, which included a pair of birdies and back-to-back eagles. The PGA Tour rookie is tied for 16th at 6-under.

A fellow Canadian, David Hearn, is also tied for 16th with Taylor. Hearn shot a 66 Friday.

Adam Hadwin followed up his opening-round with a 1-over 72 to fall into a tie for 45th at 3-under par.

Jarrod Lyle had a 71 to fall into a tie for 22nd at 5 under. The Australian is making his second PGA Tour start since a recurrence of leukemia some 18 months ago.

FedEx Cup winner Billy Horschel missed the cut with rounds of 71 and 72. At No. 13, he was the top-ranked player in the field.

Bae Sang-moon, the Frys.com Open winner Sunday in the season opener in Napa, California, also shot 71-72 to miss the cut.

LAS VEGAS – Stewart Cink birdied seven of the final 11 holes Thursday for a 7-under 64 and a share of the first-round lead with Martin Laird in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.

Cink had a bogey-free round at TPC Summerlin in his first start since dropping out of the FedEx Cup playoffs after the second event. He won the last of his six PGA Tour titles in the 2009 British Open.

“Well, 64 is good for anybody, I think, but on the first day of the year, you don’t really ever know what’s going to come out, the first day of the season,” Cink said. “It’s been six weeks since I played and you have to prepare yourself to be ready for both, a great start and a not so great start, and just be ready to keep going.

“I have to be honest, through seven holes I had seven pars and it didn’t look like anything special out there except a whole lot of grazed putts. I just kind of was patient and waited for a good stretch, and a good  stretch happened.”

Laird also had a bogey-free round. He played the front nine in 5-under 30 and added birdies on Nos. 15 and 18, holing a 50-foot putt on the last. The Scot won the 2009 event and lost in a playoff in 2010 when Jonathan Byrd made a hole-in-one on the fourth extra hole.

“I missed a bunch of opportunities on the back nine, putted great on the front and hit it actually better on the back than I did the front nine, just kept missing 8-, 10-footers,” Laird said. “Then I said to my caddie walking up the last, watch, `This will be typical, I’ve just missed 8-, 10-footers and I’ll probably make this 50-footer.’ And I did, so it was just one of those days, and it was nice to see that one go in.”

Scotland’s Russell Knox was third at 66. He played his first 11 holes in 7 under, dropped strokes on Nos. 5 and 6 and closed with a birdie on No. 9.

“Got off to a good start, made a nice putt on the first hole, and the front nine I played so well,” Knox said. “I hit it good, putted unbelievable. Just got a little ahead of myself, started thinking about that magic number a little too early.”

Jarrod Lyle, Bo Van Pelt, Hideki Matsuyama, Sam Saunders, Brian Stuard and Andrew Svoboda shot 66.

Lyle is making his second PGA Tour start since a recurrence of leukemia some 18 months ago. The Australian tied for 31st last week in the season-opening Frys.com Open in Napa, California.

“It was a good round today,” Lyle said. “Got off to a bit of a shaky start, but I rolled some putts in and just kept myself out of trouble, which is a nice thing to do.”

To keep his PGA Tour card, Lyle needs to earn $250,825 in his next 19 events to reach the equivalent of No. 125 on the money list in 2012. He made $33,300 last week.

“I’ve got a job to do and I’ve got to try to make as much money as I can to try and regain my playing privileges,” Lyle said. “I’m starting the year just like everybody else. I’ve probably got less events than other people have got to play, but the goal is exactly the same, go out there and make as many cuts as you can, finish as high as you can on the leaderboard, and great play takes care of a lot of issues.”

Canada’s Adam Hadwin is tied for 10th after opening with a bogey-free 4-under-par  67.

Andres Romero had a hole-in-one on the 203-yard 17th en route to tying Hadwin with 67. He used a 7-iron.

Defending champion Webb Simpson opened with a 69.

David Hearn is 1-under after a 70.

FedEx Cup winner Billy Horschel had a 71. At No. 13, he’s the top-ranked player in the field.

Frys.com Open winner Bae Sang-moon also had a 71, as did Canadian Nick Taylor.

The PGA of America wants to take a closer look at its Ryder Cup failures by creating a task force that includes Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, along with three past captains of losing American teams.

The 11-member “Ryder Cup Task Force” announced early Tuesday has five players, three former captains and three PGA of America officials.

The co-chairs are PGA chief executive Pete Bevacqua and Derek Sprague, next in line to be president of the PGA of America. The purpose was to examine everything from how the captains are picked to how the players qualify for the team, and when the captain’s picks are decided.

“This is a great step by the PGA to accomplish what we all want – to win the Ryder Cup,” Woods said in a statement issued by the PGA of America.

Europe has won the Ryder Cup eight of the last 10 times, including a 16 1/2-11 1/2 victory last month at Gleneagles.

The previous two matches were decided by one point, including 2012 at Medinah when Europe rallied from a 10-6 deficit with the greatest comeback by a visiting team. PGA president Ted Bishop, saying he was tired of losing, picked Tom Watson as the oldest (65) captain in Ryder Cup history for the 2014 matches in Scotland.

The move backfired. Watson appeared to be out of touch at Gleneagles in his decisions and at news conferences. The Ryder Cup ended with an awkward news conference in which Mickelson – beside Watson – praised the success of Paul Azinger in 2008 in the most recent U.S. victory and suggested that Watson didn’t embrace that winning formula.

In the aftermath of the loss, various reports painted a picture of a heavy-handed leadership style in the U.S. team that brought even more attention to the loss.

The task force does not include Azinger, who said on Monday it was too soon after the Ryder Cup. Azinger said he has a private meeting already scheduled with the PGA of America within the next month.

Sprague is expected to take over when Bishop’s term as president expires next month at the PGA’s annual meeting. The other PGA of America official on the task force is Paul Levy, who is the secretary of the organization.

The past captains on the committee are Davis Love III (2012), Tom Lehman (2006) and Raymond Floyd (1989). Mickelson and Woods are joined by Steve Stricker, Jim Furyk and Rickie Fowler.

Woods has played on only one winning team, in 1999. Mickelson and Furyk have played on two winning teams. Stricker played in his first Ryder Cup in 2008 and was an assistant captain at Gleneagles. Fowler has yet to win a match in his two Ryder Cup appearances.

Overlooked in the reaction to the latest American loss was the strength of the European team, which had four of the top five players in the world when the teams were set. Europe had three of the four major champions in Rory McIlroy (British Open, PGA Championship) and Martin Kaymer (U.S. Open).

“I see the negative connotations to it taking away from our victory, but I see the positive side that they’ll have to really have an in-depth look to what they are doing wrong, and try to bring together a recipe that connects,” Graeme McDowell said from the Volvo World Match Play Championship in England.

This Ryder Cup featured an unusual spate of second-guessing even before the match. Watson selected Webb Simpson with his final captain’s pick, overlooking Chris Kirk who had just won a FedEx Cup playoff event. Billy Horschel went on to win the next two playoff events after the wild-card selections were announced.

Simpson played only two matches at Gleneagles. Mickelson, with a U.S. record 10 appearances, was benched all day Saturday.

The PGA of America did not reveal a timetable for when the task force would meet or even what would come out of it. The next captain will not be selected until next year – it typically is announced at the PGA annual meeting in November.

“The Ryder Cup is our most prized competitive asset, and the PGA of America is committed to utilizing our utmost energy and resources to support one of the biggest events in all of sport,” Bishop said in a statement.