HARRISON, New York, 21 June 2003 — Briny Baird fired the lowest round of his career, an eight-under-par 63, to surge three shots clear of the field after the first round of the $5 million Buick Classic on Thursday.

Jim Furyk, winner of last week’s US Open, and Joey Sindelar shared second place on 66, with world number one Tiger Woods, South African Retief Goosen and Shigeki Maruyama of Japan a further stroke adrift at the Westchester Country Club.

South African duo Deane Pappas and Ernie Els, JL Lewis and Skip Kendall were tied on three-under 68.

Baird, 31, whose best performance in four years on the PGA Tour was a second-place finish at the 2001 John Deere Classic, began his round in style when he holed out from 77 yards for an eagle at the par-four 10th hole.

He bogeyed the 11th after taking three putts but bounced back by picking up shots at the 13th, 17th and 18th.

On his back nine, Baird sank three birdie putts from within five feet at the first, seventh and ninth, and also rammed in a 20-foot birdie putt at the fourth.

Baird, whose previous best round was a 64, has already earned $982,105 this year with four top-10 finishes.

Furyk is experiencing no letdown after winning his first major at Olympia Fields last Sunday and has been one of the tour’s most consistent players all season, with 11 top-10 finishes in 14 starts.

Woods, who was 20th at the US Open and is without a win in his last five starts worldwide, was five-under-par through his first 10 holes but two bogeys set him back before another birdie gave him his 67.

Barrett Grabs LPGA

Lead in Pittsford

In Pittsford, New York, Tina Barrett, winless since her rookie season 14 years ago, shot a 5-under-par 67 on Thursday and has a one-stroke lead after the opening round of the Rochester LPGA golf tournament.

Two weeks after celebrating her 37th birthday, Barrett collected seven birdies and a double-bogey at Locust Hill Country Club as she seeks her second career victory and first since the 1989 Ocean State Open.

Asked if she feels she’s overdue for a win, Barrett replied,

“I haven’t gotten a whole lot out of my game yet. I feel like it has been OK. I struggled with my putting the beginning of the year. It started to come around at (the LPGA Championship). It feels a lot better.”

Canada’s A.J. Eathorne overcame three straight bogeys on the back nine and opened with a 68 to grab sole possession of second place.

Defending champion Karrie Webb of Australia was among nine players who shot 3-under 69s and is two strokes back as she seeks her first win since the Women’s British Open 10 months ago.

Webb, who also captured this event in 1999, is trying to become the first three-time winner in the 27-year history of the tournament.

But Webb is having to deal with being dropped by a major sponsor because she has not won so far this season.

A year ago, Webb fired an 8-under-par 64 in the first round, posted back-to-back 72s and closed with a 68 to edge Korean Mi Hyun Kim.

Kim signed for a 69 on Thursday along with Amy Read, Marianne Morris, Anna Acker-Macosko, Koreans Grace Park and Soo-Yun Kang, Jennifer Rosales of the Philippines and Australia’s Rachel Teske, who won last week’s Giant LPGA Classic in a playoff.

Barrett is coming off her best performance of the season, tying for 20th at the LPGA Championship. But she struggled in a qualifier for next month’s US Women’s Open.

“I didn’t bounce back very well last year and I missed the cut here,” said Barrett. “I talked with my teacher last night. She said just try to make the best of it.

My husband and everybody else is like, just try to make the best of it and have a good week this week and it will hopefully ease some of the pain of it.”

She took the advice to heart and got off to a torrid start with four birdies on her first eight holes. But the momentum ground to a halt at the par-18th hole, where she three-putted from 25 feet for a double-bogey.

But Barrett bounced back on the front side, closing with three birdies in a row of 10 feet or less.

Eathorne described her round as “very interesting,” and with good reason. She played the first 11 holes in 4-under, then missed three straight greens, could not get up-and-down and slipped to 1-under.

Eathorne recovered nicely, rolling in birdies putts of eight, five and 12 feet, respectively as the 15th, 16th and 17th holes. She is seeking her first title since joining the LPGA Tour in 1999.