|
 Hoffmann, 25, eagled the par-five sixth, his 15th hole, from a
greenside bunker and nearly holed out from the fairway at his last
hole for a tap-in birdie to register a bogey-free six-under-par 66
at Bay Hill.
"Pretty crazy, right?" said the 137th-ranked Hoffmann. "It can turn
around pretty quickly. Holing out at the sixth was a nice little
bump-up there. And I love finishing (like that) at the last hole."
Englishman Ian Poulter, who eagled the par-five 16th, fired a 67 to
join Americans Kevin Na, Jason Kokrak, Ken Duke and John Peterson
one shot off the pace.
Australian Adam Scott, Sweden's Henrik Stenson, Irishman Padraig
Harrington and Americans Brandt Snedeker, Billy Horschel, Keegan
Bradley and defending champion Matt Every were among 11 players tied
on 68.
World number one Rory McIlroy hit 17 greens in regulation but failed
to take advantage of opportunities in posting 70 in his first visit
to Bay Hill.
"I felt like I was seeing good signs out there with my game," said
McIlroy, 25, who is honing his game for a bid to complete a career
grand slam at next month's Masters.
"I was hitting good shots, but not really doing anything with them,
making a lot of pars. There were positive signs. I'll just try to
come out and shoot something lower tomorrow."
World number four Scott was also not at his sharpest.
"I scrambled pretty well. I certainly didn't hit it my best," said
the 2013 Masters champion.
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Scott, continuing with his return to a short putter ahead of next
year's ban of the anchored broomstick model he had favored, said he
was a little disappointed in the slower green speeds brought about
by some course alterations.
"The greens are slower than we'd all like this week. Not exactly
what I was hoping for to test my stroke at the moment leading into
Augusta," he said. "But everything's feeling good."
McIlroy, meanwhile, was eager to make his dinner date with
tournament host Arnold Palmer.
"I'm excited for it. I've been looking forward to it for a few weeks
now knowing that I was going to be able to spend a little time in
his company," he said grinning.
(Reporting by Larry Fine in New York; Editing by Frank Pingue/Mark
Lamport-Stokes)
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