US TOUR: Swede Mathias Gronberg, 103rd on the US Tour money list this season, set the early pace at The International tournament in Castle Rock, Colorado, yesterday.
And Britain's Justin Rose might have been next to him at the top of the leaderboard but for making a mess of his final hole.
Gronberg had eight birdies and a double bogey for a total of 13 points under the modified Stableford system, which rewards attacking play.
Rose, who will play his first major for two years at next week's US PGA championship, was only one point behind with one to go, but a bad drive led to him double-bogeying and the minus three points took the 26-year-old back to nine and into a tie for fifth spot.
He had been five under par for his round after 17 holes.
Among those in joint second was Stewart Cink, whose main aim this week is to climb the Ryder Cup table with only next week's event at Medinah in Illinois to come.
CHALLENGE TOUR: Michael McGeady made a solid start to the Vodafone Challenge in Germany following his impressive performance in finishing tied second at last week's Ireland Ryder Cup Challenge.
The 28-year-old, who missed out by one shot on his maiden Challenge Tour title at Killarney Golf & Fishing Club on Sunday, produced a one-under-par 71 in the first round at Elfrather Mühle Golf Club, north of Düsseldorf.
Amazingly, it still leaves him eight shots off the lead held by Germany's Benjamin Miarka.
Miarka, who usually plies his trade on the third level EPD Tour in his homeland, had the round of his life with nine birdies and nine pars for a score of 63.
McGeady's fellow Donegal man Brian McElhinney was three over for his first two holes, having started at the 10th, but finished with a one over par 73.
LET TOUR: Defending champion Annika Sorenstam took pride of place at the Scandinavian TPC in Stockholm yesterday.
The Swede carded a seven-under par 66 in the first round at Bro-Balsta Golf Club in Stockholm.
Sorenstam, a member of the club since she was 12, had five birdies and an eagle to lead by two shots from the new Women's British Open Champion, American Sherri Steinhauer.
England's Karen Stupples, with four birdies and an eagle, had a four-under-par 69, while Laura Davies, who just slipped up with a bogey at the 17th, was on 70.
The highlight of the round was an eagle at the sixth - her 15th - where she hit a four-wood second shot onto the green and holed a 35-foot putt.
US WOMEN'S AMATEUR: Martina Gillen kept alive Irish hopes in the US Women's Amateur Championship at the Witch Hollow course at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in North Plains, Oregon, on Wednesday as she edged into the second round.
After a ding-dong battle, the 24-year-old Irish international and Curtis Cup player from Beaverstown squeezed into the last 32 with a 19th-hole success against 16-year-old Vicki Hurst of Florida, the runner-up in this year's US Girls Junior championship.
Gillen was paired with Mina Harigae of California for yesterday's second round.
GIRLS' AMATEUR: Ireland bounced back from their first-day defeat by England at Portstewart yesterday to overcome Wales and give themselves an outside chance of their first title.
The Irish won 6-3, the same margin by which Scotland defeated England.
To achieve that they will need to crush resurgent Scotland by a large margin and hope that England do not virtually whitewash Wales.
"It is a tall order to expect that to happen, but while there is even a glimmer of hope you never know," said captain Jackie Quinn.
The foursomes were hard-fought, ending with honours even, and there was high tension in the afternoon as fortunes ebbed and flowed.
Royal Portrush's Stephanie Meadow and Tara Davies, the champions of Ireland and Wales, had a battle royale, with Meadow recovering from a two-hole deficit at the start of the homeward stretch to claim a share of the honours.
Theoretically anyone of England, Scotland or Ireland could win the title, but the Scots with two wins are in pole position.
