Tiger Woods Falters Early at BMW Championship

Tiger Woods got off to a slow start Friday at the BMW Championship, the third tournament of the U.S. PGA Tour playoffs, in Lemont, Illinois.

He placed 45th in the first round by shooting a 2 over-73.

Woods, who has won five titles at Cop Hill golf course, hit just five of his 14 driver shots in the fairway. He will need a dramatic turnaround to finish in the top five because the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings can advance to the PGA Tour Championship in Atlanta, the final playoff.

Matt Kuchar, the FedEx Cup points leader, put his name atop the leaderboard by finishing with an 18-foot birdie putt for a 7 under-64.

Among Koreans in the tournament, Charlie Wi wound up with a 4 under-67, sharing fourth place with Retief Goosen. K.J. Choi was in 27th with an even par, while Y.E. Yang was tied with Woods at 45th.

kjs0123@donga.com