ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) — Jinichiro Kozuma birdied his first three holes in a bogey-free round of 9-under 63 to take a one-stroke lead Friday after the first round of the LIV Series golf tournament.
Starting on the 15th hole in the shotgun-style start, the Japanese player had seven birdies and an eagle on the par-5 seventh hole at The Grange, where last year's inaugural event featured one of the largest galleries of the year on the LIV series.
Click to Gallery
ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) — Jinichiro Kozuma birdied his first three holes in a bogey-free round of 9-under 63 to take a one-stroke lead Friday after the first round of the LIV Series golf tournament.
Captain Martin Kaymer of Cleeks GC hits his shot on the 18th hole during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Chris Trotman/LIV Golf via AP)
Captain Phil Mickelson of HyFlyers GC hits a shot on the second hole during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Matthew Harris/LIV Golf via AP)
Captain Joaquín Niemann of Torque GC reacts during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Charles Laberge/LIV Golf via AP)
Captain Dustin Johnson of 4Aces GC is shown during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Matt Turner/LIV Golf via AP)
Jinichiro Kozuma of Iron Heads GC waits on the 18th hole during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Chris Trotman/LIV Golf via AP)
Local media reported 40,000 spectators attended Friday.
“Today my putting was really good, it was really hot,” Kozuma said. “I had some troubles here and there, but my putting was there to help me get through pars."
Carlos Ortiz and Danny Lee were tied for second with 64s, while four others were tied for fourth with 65s. The group included Jon Rahm, who has yet to win since joining LIV in December.
“Obviously on any kind of golf course, if you start the tournament with an 8-under round, it’s very good," Lee said. "There’s a lot of birdie holes out there. Whatever I was doing today and whatever Jinny (Kozuma) was doing today worked out pretty good.”
Ortiz said if the wind stays the way it is, coming after the rain leading into the tournament, “I think it definitely sets up the golf course pretty gettable, especially if you put it in the fairway.”
Series points leader Joaquin Niemann, who has two LIV titles this season, opened with a 67. Talor Gooch, who won the first of his three LIV titles last season at Adelaide, shot 68.
The LIV tour remains in the Asia region next week for the May 3-5 Singapore event at the Sentosa Golf Club. Then there's a month-long break before resuming in Houston from June 7-9.
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Captain Sergio Garcia of Fireballs GC hits his shot from the 11th tee during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Charles Laberge/LIV Golf via AP)
Captain Martin Kaymer of Cleeks GC hits his shot on the 18th hole during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Chris Trotman/LIV Golf via AP)
Captain Phil Mickelson of HyFlyers GC hits a shot on the second hole during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Matthew Harris/LIV Golf via AP)
Captain Joaquín Niemann of Torque GC reacts during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Charles Laberge/LIV Golf via AP)
Captain Dustin Johnson of 4Aces GC is shown during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Matt Turner/LIV Golf via AP)
Jinichiro Kozuma of Iron Heads GC waits on the 18th hole during the practice round for LIV Golf Adelaide at the Grange Golf Club Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Adelaide, Australia. (Chris Trotman/LIV Golf via AP)
Brittney Griner continues her efforts to settle into a normal routine following her release from a Russian prison 17 months ago.
Life isn't what it once was for the perennial WNBA All-Star.
The 6-foot-8 center looks different and has different priorities. Gone are her familiar dreadlocks that couldn't be maintained during her incarceration. She regularly sees a therapist to help her cope after being imprisoned for 10 months. And since her release, Griner has been an advocate for the return of other Americans detained overseas.
She has met with President Joe Biden twice since her release, including once last month in Phoenix.
“Got to talk to him about a couple of people and just keep it on the forefront of everyone’s mind,” the Phoenix Mercury star said in a phone interview with The Associated Press. “You want to get exposure and that keeps it on the forefront of people’s minds. Keep people accountable.”
Griner was detained at a Moscow airport in February 2022. Russian authorities said a search of her luggage revealed vape cartridges containing oil derived from cannabis.
She shares details about the harrowing experience in her new book — “Coming Home” — which comes out Tuesday.
Griner hopes one takeaway for anyone who reads the book will be a vivid picture of what detainees have to endure. She said it's why it took her all of last season to write it with Michelle Burford.
“I didn’t leave anything out from the detainment, to being over there, the conditions. As much as we could fit into a book, we basically did,” Griner said. “People will be shocked at some of the things.
"I hope it brings a little bit more of an understanding to the conditions that detainees go through.”
Griner says it is important people have a clear picture of what it's like for those Americans not home yet, including Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich, so that no one gives up the fight.
“It took everyone to come together to bring me home,” she said. Government officials "have to make really hard decisions.”
Griner, who first met President Biden at the White House Correspondent's dinner in 2023 a few months after her return to the U.S., said she and her WNBA teammates must keep the momentum going to get everyone home.
“How are we going to do it? Bringing in families, playing videos, give them airtime?" she said. "Maybe someone that doesn’t know, sees (the book) and they write a letter to Congress that tips over the scale to get someone home.”
Griner said her days of playing basketball overseas during the WNBA offseason are over.
Though many WNBA players still play in international leagues to supplement their league salaries, Griner said she is done, except with USA Basketball. She hopes to be on the Olympic team at the Paris Games this summer, and the odds are in her favor that will happen.
Griner had played in China for a few years during the WNBA offseason, before making the move to Russia — where she had played since 2015 before her arrest.
It’s not just her ordeal in Russia, however, that is going to keep her home. Griner's wife, Cherelle, is expecting the couple’s first child.
“The only time I’ll go overseas is with Team USA,” Griner said. “I need to be in the states. About to be a parent. Last thing I want to do is be in and out of my kid’s life. I want to be there for everything. I don’t want to uproot my family and take them overseas with me. It’s too much.”
Griner, who has been an advocate for mental health for the past decade, said she sees a therapist regularly — something she did for several years before she went to Russia — and it helps her process what she endured while in prison.
“They are instrumental to my mental health,” Griner said about her sessions. “Everyone can benefit from having someone to talk to. Someone outside of their every day life. It just helps to have a different perspective on life from someone.
"That way if you do feel nervous or struggling with something, it’s very beneficial.”
The 33-year-old took a mental health break for several days last summer during the WNBA season, missing three games. She'll begin her 12th year in the league May 14.
Griner is looking forward to it after the welcome she received in her return last year. One of the only positives that Griner will take away from her ordeal was the outpouring of support she received from people in the form of letters they wrote to her in prison.
“The letters were amazing from the fans, teammates, opponents, GMs, they all meant so much to me,” she said. “It was very dark at times, especially going through the trial. When I was in isolation for weeks, it was an emotional rollercoaster and those letters made me remember that I wasn't forgotten.”
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
FILE - Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner, right, hugs former college teammate Dallas Wings guard Odyssey Sims after a WNBA basketball basketball game in Arlington, Texas, Friday, June 9, 2023. Griner says since her release from a Russian prison 17 months ago that she has used her platform as a WNBA All-Star and Olympic gold medalist to advocate for the return of other Americans detained overseas. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)
FILE - Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner, center, hugs Seattle Storm guard Jewell Loyd, left, after a WNBA basketball game Saturday, June 24, 2023, at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle. Life isn't what it once was for the perennial WNBA All-Star. (Kevin Clark/The Seattle Times via AP, File, Filer)
FILE - WNBA basketball player Brittney Griner speaks at a news conference, Thursday, April 27, 2023, in Phoenix. While many WNBA players play in international leagues to supplement their incomes, Griner says the only time she'll ever play outside country again is with the USA Basketball. (AP Photo/Matt York, File)
This cover image released by Knopf shows "Coming Home" by Brittney Griner, with Michelle Burford. (Knopf via AP)
FILE - WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner, second from right, is escorted to a courtroom for a hearing in Khimki outside Moscow, Russia, July 7, 2022. Griner continues her efforts to settle into a normal routine following her release from a Russian prison 17 months ago. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)
FILE - Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner (42) makes a layup during the second quarter of a WNBA basketball game against the Washington Mystics, July 23, 2023, in Washington. Griner continues her efforts to settle into a normal routine following her release from a Russian prison 17 months ago. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough, File)
FILE - WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner speaks to her lawyers from inside a cage in a courtroom in Khimki, outside Moscow, Russia, on July 26, 2022. Griner continues her efforts to settle into a normal routine following her release from a Russian prison 17 months ago. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, Pool, File)
