Sony Open round one: A hot putter puts Donald in the lead

Golf, like football (of the non-helmeted variety) can be a game of two halves, as a few leading lights discovered at Waialae Thursday. J B Holmes turned a few tipsters’ faces red as he stuttered to six over after 8. It looked as if he was on the way to sparing Michelle Wie’s blushes as she slid to yet another embarrassing eight over.

Maybe his caddie gave him a big kick at that point because suddenly Jaybee was sinking birdies like nobody’s business and he ended up all square. That still leaves his stats a mess and a lot of work to do but is that string of six birdies a sign of things to come?

Then there was defending champion David Toms, who came to the turn a handy four under after an eagle on his ninth. Oops, double bogey-bogey-bogey and he’s got a mountain to climb, for all the course is flat as a pancake.

You can’t rule him out, nor Vijay Singh whose one over was a huge anti-climax. Aggressive start? He was struggling to wind himself up again after coming off the high of last week. Thursday’s round was only the second over par in his last 22 at Waialea.

Instead it’s Luke Donald playing pied piper with a 63, although thankfully there were so few watching we were spared those strange “Luuuuuuuuuke” cries that sound like he’s being booed. His superb iron play was given a full airing, as was his ability in the wind, which was a bit stronger than forecast at around 20mph. But it was his work on the greens that set the seal on things, leaving him top of the putting stats.

His lively following includes K J Choi, an early riser last week as well, and Jim Furyk, another to come good around the turn. He and Choi lead the way in greens in regulation.

One thing the top players are proving is how handy it is to have a competitive game under your belt from the previous week. Six birdies from Will MacKenzie, leavened by a solitary bogey, suggest his surfin’ Safari is rolling along nicely, but I’m also keeping an eye out for Chad Campbell, another to have a chalk and cheese round: a blistering first nine and then - nothing. Geoff Ogilvy might be worth watching - Thursday’s bogey-free 67 was something of a first for the US Open champion here.

Similarly poised at three under are Nathan Green (woeful GIR stats but second only to Donald for putting), Trevor Immelman, decently placed despite still struggling with the greens, and Robert Allenby, who I only mention because he topped my stats at the outset. I didn’t mention it because at this stage in the season I don’t trust the form too much.