Thorpe And Jenkins, Feeling Refreshed, Share Lead After 64s

BLAINE, Minn. (AP) _ Jim Thorpe and Tom Jenkins will take playing on American soil any day. <br/><br/>Saying that skipping last week's Senior British Open refreshed them, Thorpe and Jenkins shot 8-under

Saturday, August 4th 2007, 2:44 pm

By: News On 6

BLAINE, Minn. (AP) _ Jim Thorpe and Tom Jenkins will take playing on American soil any day.

Saying that skipping last week's Senior British Open refreshed them, Thorpe and Jenkins shot 8-under 64s on Friday to share the 3M Championship's first-round lead.

The conditions were ideal for low scores at the TPC of the Twin Cities.

Fifty-seven of the 78 players broke par on a day with low humidity and high temperatures in the mid-80s. The wind, which can play havoc on the former sod farm, wasn't a factor.

The sunny weather was quite different from the blustery conditions encountered by players in Scotland. Tom Watson, last week's winner, might be OK with playing overseas, but Thorpe isn't.

``I don't need to go across the pond to make bogeys,'' the 58-year-old Thorpe quipped. ``I don't like wearing an overcoat in July. I probably saved some money by not going.''

Thorpe, who hasn't played on the senior circuit in three weeks, said he passed on golf completely while others were competing for a major title.

``Sometimes you just need to put the clubs away,'' Thorpe said.

Jenkins, 59, feels the same way. Like Thorpe, he hasn't played on the 50-and-over tour since the Dick's Sporting Goods Open in mid-July, and the Senior British Open didn't appeal to him.

``At my age, it's just easier to stay home,'' he said, noting it would have cost him $25,000 or more to make the trans-Atlantic trip. ``I'm not a very good bad weather player, anyway.''

Thorpe and Jenkins, who both made eight birdies and no bogeys Friday, are seeking their first Champions Tour victories of the season. Thorpe has 12 senior wins in his career, while Jenkins has seven.

Jay Haas already has won plenty this season _ four times _ and he's in the hunt again. The Champions Tour's money list leader was one stroke back along with five others.

The average score was 69.83, the lowest first-round figure in the event's 15-year history.

``The course was there for the taking,'' Jenkins said.

Craig Stadler, Bobby Wadkins, D.A. Weibring, John Jacobs and John Harris also shot 65s. Three more stood at 6 under: three-time champion Hale Irwin, Gil Morgan and Boonchu Ruangkit.

Organizers are keeping the tournament on schedule despite Wednesday's freeway bridge collapse in Minneapolis. The 54-hole event is being held in Blaine, a suburb about 15 miles north of the section of the Interstate 35W bridge that collapsed into the Mississippi River.

The tournament initially earmarked charity funds for four local hospitals, and officials said additional money will be given to the local Red Cross in response to Wednesday's disaster.

``The normalcy for us is when we get inside the ropes,'' said Harris, who lives in Minneapolis and wore a black ribbon on his hat to honor the bridge collapse victims. ``But there is a lot of remorse among the guys out here for what happened.''

Harris was driving north on 35W, ``about 10 minutes away'' from the bridge, when it crumbled.

``It reminds everybody how unimportant golf is in the real world,'' Harris said. ``It's fun to see everybody out here, but it's been a tough week in Minnesota.''

The former University of Minnesota golf and hockey standout tied for 26th at last year's 3M Championship _ his best finish in five appearances.

Haas, who is playing in his first 3M Championship, set the day's tone along with Stadler when they turned in 65s as part of the day's first grouping.

Haas and Stadler teed off with Bob Gilder at 8 a.m. and completed their round in about 3 hours, 40 minutes. Haas made a 40-foot putt on the par-5 18th hole for an eagle.

``We finished three or four holes ahead of the next group and had a good time doing it,'' said Stadler, who has placed second in the 3M Championship each of the past three years.

David Edwards, the 3M Championship winner in 2006, and Watson both shot 69s.