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Kelly continues Augusta form

13/04/2007

Jerry Kelly has carried on where he left off from his good finish at last week's US Masters by taking a first-round lead at the Verizon Heritage golf tournament in South Carolina.

The American, who finished tied for fifth at the Augusta National, leads by two shots from South Africa's Ernie Els after carding ten birdies in his round of 63.

Els also played well finishing on 65 to head the chasing pack, which includes Fred Funk and Stewart Cink on four-under.

Argentina's Jose Coceres and Australian Stephen Leaney are tied for third on five-under-par – a far cry from the high scores that dominated the leaderboard in the major in Georgia last weekend.

"I wouldn't put this golf course that far away from Augusta, but it just shows how difficult Augusta was," Kelly said afterwards, gesturing towards the sunny weather on the Carolinian coast.

The Masters was dominated by tricky playing conditions, including unseasonably high winds.

Last week's winner Zach Johnson struggled on day one, carding a one-under-par round of 70 to trail the leader by seven shots, while England's Justin Rose was forced to withdraw from the tournament with a back injury before teeing off for his opening round.

Johnson's participation at the South Carolina event was in doubt after claiming the green jacket last week, but he insisted on going ahead with his schedule as planned.

He is the first golfer to travel to the South Carolina tournament as a Masters champion since Vijay Singh in 2000.

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