Jimenez scores breezy 64, paces British Open

 TURNBERRY, Scotland – Miguel Angel Jimenez rolled in a 66-foot birdie putt at the final hole for a 6-under 64 to claim the opening-round lead at the British Open on Thursday.

The ponytailed Spaniard known as “The Mechanic” birdied the final two holes in a bogey-free round that knocked Tom Watson and Ben Curtis out of the top spot on the leaderboard on a calm day at Turnberry.

“You look at the sea, and it looked like a pond - so nice, so calm,” Jimenez said. “You can’t ask for a better day. No wind, no nothing, and it took care of me.”

At 45, Jimenez beat his previous low score in the Open by three strokes and just missed the major championship record.

The 59-year-old Watson, a five-time winner of the claret jug, held the lead for most of the day after his 65.

His score was matched by Ben Curtis, the surprise winner of the 2003 Open, and Japanese Tour regular Kenichi Kuboya, who surged into contention after most of the fans had headed for the pubs with a birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie finish.

Tiger Woods struggled to a 71.

On a day for going low, the world’s No. 1 player struggled, hitting one wayward shot after another - including a dunk in Wilson’s Burn, which led to the last of his four bogeys at No. 16.

When the round ended, Woods headed back to the range to work on his swing, which looked downright ugly with his right hand flying off the club. His first signs of frustrating emerged at No. 3, when he took an angry swipe and mumbled something under his breath. By the time the day was done, he had angrily tossed away his clubs several times.

Woods’ score was especially disappointing given the conditions at Turnberry: partly sunny, no rain and barely the hint of a breeze off the Irish Sea.

“I certainly made a few mistakes out there,” Woods said. “Realistically, I probably should have shot about 1- or 2-under par.”

Thirty-two years after his epic “Duel in the Sun” with Jack Nicklaus, Watson took advantage of pristine conditions at Turnberry on Thursday.

“Not bad for an almost 60-year-old,” said Watson, who turns 60 in September. “Obviously I enjoyed it. I played very well, kept the ball in play, made a few putts. The course was defenseless today. As a result, you’re seeing a lot of scores under par. I suspect by the end of the day, 65 will not be in the lead.”

Nicklaus played his final British Open at St. Andrews in 2005 and faded into retirement. But the guy who beat him at Turnberry in ‘77 still has a few shots left.

Watson kept the ball in the fairway, rolled in five birdies and bailed himself out the few times he got into trouble, including a testy 6-footer at the final hole to preserve a bogey-free round.        (AP)