Two days after his Presidents Cup snub, Rory Sabbatini made captain Greg Norman’s decision to leave him off the International team look even more peculiar.
Sabbatini ran off seven birdies on the renovated Cog Hill course in Lemont, Ill., for a 5-under-par 66 yesterday, giving him a share of the lead with Steve Marino at the BMW International and hope of making it to the
They had a one-shot lead over Bo Van Pelt and Marc Leishman, who qualified for the third playoff event by making an eagle on his final hole Monday at TPC Boston.
Tiger Woods, a four-time winner at Cog Hill, was among those at 68.
Sabbatini won the Byron Nelson Championship in May and appeared to be in good shape to make the Presidents Cup team until Y.E. Yang stunned the golf world with his comeback win over Woods at the PGA Championship to bump Sabbatini out of the top 10.
Norman then used his two captain’s picks on 17-year-old Ryo Ishikawa of Japan, who has won four times in the last calendar year, and Adam Scott, who is in the worst slump of his career and has fallen out of the top 50 in the world rankings.
Woods kept himself in the mix, making a few good par saves and three birdie putts inside 5 feet.
Steve Stricker, whose victory last week in the
Heath Slocum, The Barclays winner, shot 70.
European PGA - Soren Hansen of Denmark shot a 7-under 65 to take a one-stroke lead over Chris Wood of England after the first round of the Mercedes-Benz Championship in Cologne, Germany.
