Woods to bounce back at the Buick next week

Tiger Woods has announced he will make his seasonal debut next week in San Diego at the Buick Invitational after missing the first five events of the year following knee surgery.

"Things are progressing nicely," he said. "I'm starting to get accustomed to having full practices and I'm excited about working on my game again."

The world No 1 has not played a PGA Tour event since he tied for seventh at the season-ending Tour Championship. He won five times last season en route to his fourth successive player of the year award.

On Tuesday, Woods played 18 holes for the first time since his knee surgery in mid-December. "I played with my dad and he hit it pretty darn good for age 70," he said. "I was pleased with the way I hit it, too. I shot 66, which isn't too bad."

In Sydney, Peter Fowler set the first-round pace in the ANZ Championship at the New South Wales Club to lead a clutch of Australians at the top of the leaderboard.

The 43-year-old shot an eight-under-par 64 which, translated into the modified stableford format used here, won him 17 points. The system is aimed at encouraging attacking golf and seemed to bear fruit last year, when 93 eagles were made, compared to the PGA tournament average of 41. A birdie wins two points, an eagle five and, with a par being zero and a bogey only minus one, the onus is on the players to attack the pin.

Fowler led the field by a point from his compatriot Stuart Appleby, with the in-form Peter Lonard another point back on 15 and Craig Parry on 14.

ANZ CHAMPIONSHIP (Sydney) Leading first-round scores (Modified stableford format; GB or Irl unless stated): +17 P Fowler (Aus); +16 S Appleby (Aus); +15 P Lonard (Aus); +14 C Parry (Aus); +12 T Dier (Ger), M Blackey, S Collins (Aus); +11 S Scahill (NZ), D Howell, S Leaney (Aus), S Conran (Aus), R Karlsson (Swe); +10 D Drysdale, J-F Remesy (Fr), S Webster, T Price (Aus), B Kennedy (Aus), N O'Hern (Aus), H Bjornstad (Nor), D Carter, M Cain (Aus), P Senior (Aus), M Pearson (US); +7 B Hughes (Aus), M Pearce (NZ), R Lee (NZ), T Carolan (Aus), A Coltart, G Evans, C Rodiles (Sp); +6 M A Martin (Sp), J Berendt (Arg), A Le Vesconte (Aus), I Poulter, W Grady (Aus), R Gonzalez (Arg), N Vanhootegem (Bel), M Maritz (SA), D Lynn, R Russell. Selected: +4 P Lawrie.