US TOUR: Holder Joey Sindelar fired a four-under-par 68 to grab a share of the lead midway through the first round of the $5.6 million Wachovia Championship at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina, yesterday.
American Sindelar, who won in a play-off last year to end a 14-year title drought, had one bogey and one birdie on the front nine before birdieing five of the first six holes on the homeward stretch.
Sindelar shares the early first round lead with Patrick Sheehan, Kenny Perry and Sweden's Richard Johnson. Padraig Harrington was three back on 71.
Harrington had only seven pars in his mixed-bag of one-under-par 71. Staring at the 10th, The Dubliner was quickly onto the leaderboard with birdies at the 10th, 11th and 14th, but from there on it was a struggle for the Stackstown man.
A birdie two at the 17th was sandwiched between bogeys at the 16th and 18th in an outward half of two-under-par 34. Two more birdies followed at the fifth and ninth, but bogeys at the third, fourth and sixth saw him back in 37.
COURSE DESIGN: Colin Montgomerie has done it. Ernie Els is doing it, and now Padraig Harrington is set to get in on the act, writes Philip Reid.
The Dubliner has become the latest golfer to design a course in Dubai. In Harrington's case, the 18-hole course will be located at a new development called Dream City and will represent his first move into course architecture.
Harrington, who is due to launch the development in Dublin next Tuesday, has made no secret of his desire to move into course design but was anxious to wait for the right opportunity. The course in the United Arab Emirates will be beside the Arabian Sea and form part of a development that will also include a polo club and water park, as well as five-star hotels, bars and a residential development of apartments and villas.
The Montgomerie course in Dubai opened for play in 2002, while the Els course - located in Dubai Sports City, which will also house a Manchester United football academy and an ICC international cricket academy - is due to open in 2007.
CHALLENGE TOUR: Colm Moriarty and Tim Rice lead the Irish charge in the Wales Challenge at the Vale Hotel Golf Resort with opening rounds of one-under-par 72 yesterday.
The pair are three shots behind first round leader Paul Streeter of England, who fired a four-under-par 69 to lead by one from Kyron Sullivan of Wales.
Noel Fox also has the leaders in his sights after a level par 72. However, Liam Higgins, the leader of the order of merit, is well off the pace after a 77, with Danny Sugrue a shot further back on 78, while Justin Kehoe had a disastrous finish, dropping 10 shots in the final six holes for an 88.
