GOLF Houston Open:Stuart Appleby, who set a course record in the first round, broke 70 on all four days and finished 19-under-par to win last year's Houston Open, was in a three-way tie for the clubhouse lead last night with half the field still to complete their first round.
Appleby, on six-under-par 66, shared the early lead with Kevin Sunderland and Johnson Wagner at the Tournament Course at Redstone that drew mixed reviews from the players in its debut a year ago.
The tournament was moved from late April to the week before the Masters and organisers have tried to mimic the conditions at Augusta, speeding up the greens, and trimming the rough and slopes around water hazards.
Appleby was the only one of the trio to drop a shot - at the par-five sixth hole - in halves of 34 and 32. Sunderland and Wagner both had nines of 32 and 34.
Jason Leonard is in a four-way tie for second place, while Lee Westwood opened with a 68.
Later starter Padraig Harrington was two-over-par after nine holes that included a birdie at the fourth, a bogey at the second and a double-bogey at the sixth.
World number one Tiger Woods will miss the $5 million Champions Tournament in Shanghai for the first time on November 8th-11th this year.
"Due to personal and professional scheduling issues, Tiger Woods will not compete . . . but we hope to welcome him back in 2008 and beyond," said tournament sponsor HSBC.
Woods was second behind David Howell in 2005 and again finished runner-up a year later, this time to South Korea's Yang Yong-eun.
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