Lead Is a Matter of Course

LA JOLLA —  They’re one round deep into the Buick Invitational and that should be long enough to know who’s leading, but that would be too easy.

Actually, nothing was too easy to fathom Thursday at Torrey Pines, especially the South course, plus a struggling Tiger Woods and the fact that the player who is tied for the lead says he really isn’t in first place at all.

Brandt Jobe and Thomas Levet beat up the user-friendly North course with seven-under-par 65s and they’re tied for the lead ... at least that’s what the scoreboard said.

Jobe said something else.

“Jesper.”

That would be Jesper Parnevik, the man dressed in black to honor his new hero, Johnny Cash. Parnevik shot a five-under 67 on the notoriously beefy, 7,607-yard South course.

It was enough for Jobe to give Parnevik the advantage as the true first-round leader of this $5.1-million event, which probably shouldn’t have anything resembling a leader until everybody has played both the North and South courses -- the North to try to go low and the South to try to keep your head above water. The weekend rounds will be played on the South.

“I don’t think who’s leading really matters right now, to be honest with you,” Jobe said. “Today I don’t really think has a bearing on anything. After tomorrow you kind of gauge where you’re at and then get going.”

It is tempting logic. Among the top 40 first-round scores, 34 came on the 6,874-yard North course, but Woods was not among them with a one-under 71. That’s the same score as Phil Mickelson and a tie for 56th, but Mickelson has the edge because he was on the South course.

The scoring average on the North was 69.75, or 4.16 shots lower than the South.

Unless Woods gets on track soon, his extended period of time off during the off-season might include a weekend vacation. When he won here last year, Woods shot 63 on the North course, so he already is digging himself out of a hole.

His record of not missing a cut for 142 consecutive tournaments ended last May at the Byron Nelson and Woods could find himself dangerously close to missing another one today if he stumbles on the difficult South course.

But he has a plan.

“Maybe I can play 16 holes and walk off,” he joked.

Woods hit one fairway Thursday but insisted it wasn’t the fault of the prototype Nike driver he’s using.

“The driver is fine,” he said. “It’s the dude holding it.”

Three under par after 10 holes, Woods made three bogeys in succession, starting at the fourth, his 13th hole, when he drove it into the right rough and then missed the green.

“A nice little hat trick of bogeys,” Woods said.

Woods also said he didn’t feel comfortable with his swing and couldn’t break the habit of hitting the ball to the right. He said he knew what he was doing, not that it made any difference the way he was playing.

“It was just an ugly round of golf,” said Woods, who didn’t use the fact that he was playing in his first tournament as an excuse.

“I got my name on my bag,” he said. “I can hit better shots than that.”

Jobe wasn’t much more accurate than Woods, but he had a much better day on the greens. Jobe hit only four fairways, but he made 168 feet of birdie putts, including a 60-footer at the 15th, his seventh birdie putt of the round. Last week, Jobe tied for 16th at the Bob Hope with only one round over par, but armed with a new Callaway driver, he’s more confident.

There are nine players tied for third at six-under 66, including Stuart Appleby and Jerry Kelly. All nine played the North course. Parnevik’s 67 put him in a pack of 12 players that also includes Billy Mayfair, Joey Sindelar and Kevin Stadler.

Levet, a Frenchman who lives in England, is playing the PGA Tour as a member for the second year in a row. Last year, he barely earned his exempt status when he was 150th on the money list.

“My philosophy in golf is not to stay at my level and play with the guys you play with every day,” he said. “It’s to play with the best players in the world. When you look at who’s at the top of the world, it’s Tiger Woods, so you have to come out and compete with him and improve. That’s the joy of golf. On any given day, any pro can beat anyone.”

And on any given day, the South course is the same way.