Hurst sets pace at U.S. Women's Open

The gallery around the ninth green at Interlachen grew quickly late Thursday afternoon as the fans anticipated Annika Sorenstam's arrival in her final U.S. Women's Open at Edina, Minn. They arrived in time to see Pat Hurst finish off quite a turnaround.

Down in the dumps after missing yet another short putt, Hurst played her next seven holes in 6-under par and finished off her round of 6-under 67 with an 8-iron that rolled off the fringe to 3 feet for a share of the lead with Ji Young Oh.

Sorenstam played in the group behind Hurst, before the largest galleries of a sunshine-filled afternoon, but she didn't give them much to cheer. The three-time Open champion, retiring at the end of the year, made 4 bogeys in a six-hole stretch and staggered to a 75, her highest opening round at this major since she played in 1992 as an amateur.

Sorenstam wasn't alone in her struggles.

Lorena Ochoa, the No. 1 player in women's golf who has won two of the last three majors, didn't make a birdie until the 14th hole in the morning, when the conditions were soft. She rallied with 3 birdies on her last five holes for a 73.

Michelle Wie, hoping to build on recent momentum, butchered the ninth hole on her way to a quintuple-bogey 9 and shot 81.

Buick Open: Corey Pavin, Bo Van Pelt and Dudley Hart shot 8-under 64s to share the first-round lead in the Buick Open at Grand Blanc. Minn.

Briny Baird and Daniel Chopra were a stroke back, and Woody Austin, Shigeki Maruyama, Kenneth Ferrie and Jon Mills shot 66s on the Warwick Hills course. Jim Furyk was among a big group four shots behind the leaders.

Pavin, who closed strong to tie for 10th last week at the Travelers Championship, shot 64s in consecutive rounds for the first time in his 25-year career.

Rocco Mediate, making his first start since pushing Tiger Woods for five-plus rounds at the U.S. Open, opened with a 71.

French Open: Spanish qualifier Pablo Larrazabal shot a 6-under 65 to take a 1-shot lead after the first round of the French Open in Saint-Quentin-En-Yvelines, France. Playing without a driver, Larrazabal relied on a 3-wood off the tee on Le Golf National's Albatross Course. England's Oliver Fisher and Ireland's Peter Lawrie opened with 66s, and Argentina's Angel Cabrera, the 2007 U.S. Open winner, had a 67.