Immelman times it just right

AUGUSTA, Ga. - Nothing he had done in recent trips around Augusta National Golf Club could have led anyone to choose Trevor Immelman for first-round fireworks in the 72d Masters.

After all, in his last seven rounds, dating to 2005, the 28-year-old South African was a whopping 29 over par, his best score a 1-over-par 73. Obviously, the bogeys were plentiful in that stretch, so how does he explain posting the only bogey-free trip of the 94 competitors yesterday?

"It was just perfect conditions for golf out there," he said.

But there was also the matter of his 2008 season - four missed cuts in seven stroke-play starts, with no finish better than joint 40th. Again, how does he explain vaulting into a share of the lead with Justin Rose?

The soft-spoken Immelman wanted to brush it off. Diagnosed with an intestinal parasite earlier this year, there was a terribly slow start, and it wasn't until March that he played on the weekend of a stroke-play tournament.

"Obviously, my form hasn't been too stellar so far this season," said Immelman. "But each week I've kind of felt like I chipped away at something new and started getting a little bit better."

It wasn't lost on some that a trio of players who came to Augusta National together a few weeks ago for two practice rounds combined to go 10 under in the opening round - Immelman, Rose, and Ian Poulter (70).

"Yeah, it's a great coincidence," said Immelman. "Hopefully, we'll keep it going."

As he started to leave, he was asked about those practice rounds with his mates. Surely, there had been some sort of game. Immelman thought for a moment and nodded. Indeed, there had.

"Justin actually won," he said. "I think I still owe him some money."

Royal send-off

For a second straight year, the Masters began with royalty - an opening tee shot by The King, Arnold Palmer. The four-time Masters champion came out of the clubhouse just after 7:45 a.m., after hitting "about three [practice] drives," and walked onto the first tee amid a thick fog. Barely able to see 150 yards down the fairway, Palmer delivered a solid shot, though no one seemed to know quite where it went. So, where did it go? Palmer smiled. "I hit it out of sight," he said . . . If it seemed to be a bittersweet morning for Palmer, that's because it was. His wife, Kit, did not make the trip. She's hospitalized in Pennsylvania, having had two procedures in the last week for an infected ankle . . . Before he went out and shot 83, the suspicion was that Gary Player, 72, could be making his last Masters start. Certainly, Palmer would vote for that. When asked if he enjoyed the role of honorary starter, he nodded and said, "I think it's something that Jack [ Nicklaus] and Gary should be doing in the next few years."

Up-and-down day

Some stalwarts in the world rankings rode roller coasters in the opening round. No. 3 Ernie Els was level par following a birdie at the 13th, but he double bogeyed the par-4 14th, and followed a birdie at the 15th with a bogey at the 18th to shoot 74 and settle into a tie for 44th. No. 4 Steve Stricker shot 73, but it featured a double bogey at the par-5 eighth and a bogey at the par-4 ninth. No. 8 Adam Scott started with bogeys on three of his first five holes, got it back to 1 over with a birdie at the 13th, but bogeyed twice over the final five holes to shoot 75. Low Singh honors went to Jeev Singh (71), as No. 10 Vijay Singh needed to make one of three birdies at the 18th to shoot 72 . . . In 23 rounds at Augusta National, Scott has yet to break 70 . . . Dashing Argentine Andres Romero, who won the recent PGA Tour stop in New Orleans, made five birdies, including three in a row starting at the par-3 sixth, but with a double bogey at the 10th and bogey at the 11th, he only managed a 72 in his Masters debut.

Honest assessment

One day earlier, Woody Austin had had a chance to earn a share of the par-3 championship, but he missed a short putt at the final hole. Did he miss it because he knows about the jinx - that no player has ever won the par-3 championship and the Masters in the same year? "I don't believe in that," he said. "Every streak loses, every streak gains, everything is broken." Besides, he dismissed himself as a Masters contender. "To be totally honest," said the man who is the definition of honest, "I would not say my chances are all that good. The golf course is just way too long for me." Then, to almost prove himself right, Austin pulled his drive into the trees at No. 1, hit a tree with a recovery shot, and saw his ball carom backward, and went on to make a double bogey to begin a round of 79 . . . For the day, there were but three eagles - the hole-in-one at the 16th by Poulter, and one each at the par-5 13th (Boo Weekley) and par-5 15th (Tiger Woods) . . . The 440-yard, par-4 17th played toughest, with a field average of 4.372, while No. 13 was easiest, at 4.670 . . . Michael Thompson (73) was the low of the three amateurs, while Drew Weaver shot 76 and Trip Kuehne 78.