KUALA LUMPUR — Tiger Woods wowed huge crowds at the CIMB Classic in Malaysia as he ripped five birdies over his last nine holes to lie three shots off the lead after the first round Thursday. The 14-time Major-winner, who has surged back to world No. 2, dropped shots on eight and nine but recovered to card 66 on the par-71 course, trailing leader Troy Matteson. On a hot, humid and low-scoring day, Matteson's scorching 63 was only good enough for a one-shot lead over Brian Harman, Jeff Overton and Robert Garrigus, with Gaganjeet Bhullar and Tom Gillis one more back on six-under. Woods was among six players tied on five-under at Kuala Lumpur's Mines Resort and Golf Club, where he lifted golf's World Cup with Mark O'Meara on his previous visit way back in 1999. His round appeared headed for mediocrity after consecutive lip-out bogeys on eight and nine, but after turning at level par a 20-foot birdie putt on the 10th sparked a sudden change in fortunes. Another birdie at 11, near-misses at 13 and 14 and three birdies in a row from 15 to 17 put the American great firmly in contention in the no-cut, $6.1 million event, and delighted his hundreds of following fans. “Turning at even par, I felt like I got run over there,” Woods said. “It felt like I had to shoot at least three or four under par on that back nine and I happened to get one more which was nice. “It's going to take something 20-plus (under par) this week to win the tournament, so you've got to be aggressive and got to go and get it.” Harrington wins title Triple major winner Padraig Harrington, helped by three consecutive birdies after the turn, held off a last-day charge by US Open champion Webb Simpson to win the PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Bermuda by one shot Wednesday. Irishman Harrington, a late addition to the elite four-man field, fired a four-under-par 67 at Port Royal Golf Course in Southampton for a nine-under total of 133 in the 36-hole event. Two strokes ahead of Masters champion Bubba Watson overnight, Harrington mixed five birdies with a lone bogey at the par-four last to fend off American Simpson, who closed with a best-of-the-week 65. It was the 41-year-old Irishman's first victory since the 2010 Iskandar Johor Open on the Asian Tour, and a case of third time lucky for him at the Grand Slam of Golf. Left-hander Watson carded a roller-coaster 71 to finish a distant third at three-under 139, level with fellow American and defending champion Keegan Bradley (67). Bradley gained his spot in the field as the first alternate after Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy pulled out due to a scheduling conflict. — Agencies
