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--> --> Memorial is too much for Tiger DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) - Just about everything went wrong for Tiger Woods in his first few holes at the Memorial Tournament. And he still had one of the best rounds of the day. Woods twice dunked shots into ponds on the first five holes, but came back for two eagles in a five-hole span for a 4-under-par 68 that left him two shots behind co-leaders Chris Smith and Scott Verplank after the first round. "It was definitely a bonus to end up in the 60s," said Woods, who has won the last two Memorial Tournaments. "I'm just trying to get back to even-par or 1-under par because anything even-par or better is going to be a good score." After playing the first 10 holes in 2 over, Woods was 5 under on the next five holes to turn things around. He hit a 3-iron on his second shot into the par-5 11th and made the 20-foot eagle putt, then followed that with an 18-footer for birdie on the signature water hole, the 12th. At the par-5 15th, Woods reached the green with a 5-iron second shot and rolled in a 4-footer for eagle. A birdie at No. 17 gave him a 6-under 30 on the back nine - a shot off the course record - and had to send shivers through the rest of the players. "The guy's remarkable - how could you say anything else?" Verplank said after a round of seven birdies and one bogey. "Nobody's played like he's played." Sergio Garcia, who matched Woods with a 68, said, "He's so aggressive and so good he can stiff it on every single hole." That shows how strong mentally he is." He makes a double, and it doesn't get to him and he's able to bounce back." Woods said other players should only reach one conclusion. "The message is still the same: I try on every shot. I don't bag it," said the winner of five of the last six major championships. "You've just got to be patient and know that you can turn it around." Smith is a former Ohio State player who has played the Muirfield Village Golf Course hundreds of times - even though this is his first trip to the Memorial. "I've looked forward to this, oh, for a mere 10 years," he said. The first player in the first group of the day, Smith said he could hardly wait to get going. He had bugged the tour office until he was certain that he was in the field. "This is more important to me than any other tournament," said Smith, who still refers to the tournament founder and host as "Mr. Nicklaus." Verplank, who grew up playing hot and dry courses in Texas and Oklahoma, said he is at his best when the greens are fast and hard, as Muirfield's have been so far this week. "We have not played greens this fast in a long time, so this is a nice change of pace," he said. Verplank had to withdraw two weeks ago at Colonial after his coughing from allergies caused him to pull a muscle in his back. He used the week off to get back treatments and recover from his allergies. He almost took the lead by himself, but his 20-foot birdie putt on the last hole curled off inches short of the hole. Jeff Sluman and Stuart Appleby were at 67, a shot back of Smith and Verplank. Besides Woods and Garcia, those at 68 included 1993 Memorial winner Paul Azinger. The word of Woods' back-nine comeback filtered through the locker room. "I don't think one guy out here concedes to him or doesn't want to beat him," Verplank said of Woods. Then he added, "It's hard to believe anybody's ever played better than he has the last two years." Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing