Stanford St Jude Championship round one: Cruelty, thy name is Southwind

There’s some cruel people at TPC Southwind. Who needs Chinese water torture when you’ve got pin positions like Thursday’s. It wasn’t just the awkward locations per se, but the fact that they seemed to be sited to allow the wind to do its worst - at the front of greens where the wind was at players’ backs, at the back with the wind in players’ faces. The US Open should be a cinch after this.

With gusts of up to 30mph making life fairly hellish on the PGA’s second most difficult course, it was small wonder only seven could break par. According to PGA Tour Fredrik Jacobson’s leading score of 67 is the highest for a first round since 1986 and the average for day one matches The Masters as the highest this season.

For much of the day it looked as though Jacobson would be left on his own thanks in no small measure to laser putting. This course seems to bring the best out in him because he was also back to hitting almost 80% of fairways. That’s a key ingredient unless you’re Adam Scott, who eventually joined him. The Australian wasn’t quite so accurate off the tee, but made up for it with his usual immaculate approach work, leaving him first for greens in regulation.

The big question for the leading duo is whether they can keep the momentum or get caught by the traditional bunching on Friday, when the going might get even tougher. The greens are getting faster, the wind looks likely to stick around, and there’s the possibility of some storms to add to the gaiety. It is going to take a lot of patience. I am impressed, though, by the way Scott responded to the setback of a double bogey on the second Thursday with an eagle straight after, and then picking off his opportunities when they came.

But with 43 players within five shots of the lead prepare for surprises. Retief Goosen for one is looking threatening just a shot behind the leader, although he needs to tighten up his putting.