February 3, 2006	Friday	Muharram 4, 1427

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DUBAI, Feb 2: Golf’s “Quiet Man” Retief Goosen grabbed a share of the opening day lead in the US$2.4m Dubai Desert Classic on Thursday, but Tiger Woods, out to end his desert win-drought, is handily placed after a confident start.

Goosen was returning to competition here after enjoying a six-weeks seasonal break back home in South Africa.

But it did not take the two-times US Open winner long to find his marks as he fired a tremendous eight-under par 64 under perfect playing conditions on the Majlis Course.

That gave him a share of the first day lead alongside Richard Green the Australian leftie who scored the biggest win of his career here in 1997 and Welshman Jamie Donaldson.

Goosen had a wobbly start from the ninth as he sought to get back into the groove, but an eagle at the par-five 13th did the trick and he went out in a scorching five-under 32.

Three more birdies on the front nine brought him in with the clubhouse lead in a tournament he has yet to win.

Green, who had eight birdies in his 64, said that just coming back to play in Dubai brought great memories flooding back from his win here nine years ago.

Donaldson joined Goosen and Green at the top of the leaderboard despite his ongoing battles with a hereditary spinal deformity problem that requires him to do daily exercises in the gym.

Woods, who has played in Dubai twice before and failed to win on both occasions, was paired with the in-form Swede Henrik Stenson and both came in with 67s, three off the pace.

The American, playing his second tournament as a 30-year-old, got off to a tremendous start and was four under through four after sinking a 40-foot seven-iron chip for eagle-three at the third.

But a bogey six on the 10th when he pushed his drive under a tree and had to hit out sideways stopped his momentum and after birdies at the 11th and 13th he could only par his way home.

Leading first round scores:

64 - Richard Green, Retief Goosen, Jamie Donaldson

66 - David Lynn, Ross Bain

67 - Nick Dougherty, Nick O’Hern, Niclas Fasth, Tiger Woods, Henrik Stenson, Paul Casey

68 - Martin Erlandsson, Joakim Backstrom, Anders Hansen, Oliver Wilson, Barry Lane, Lee Westwood Ernie Els, Costantino Rocca, Mark Foster, Darren Clarke, Damien McGrane, Raphael Jacquelin

69 - Johan Edfors, Richard Sterne, Ricardo Gonzalez, Paul Broadhurst, Stuart Little, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Thomas Bjorn, Marc Cayeux, Phillip Price, Gary Orr, Peter Lawrie, Alessandro Tadini, Emanuele Canonica.