PGA Three share Pebble Beach lead with 65s

Matt Kuchar, J.J. Henry and Tommy Tolles are the leaders.
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP) -- Matt Kuchar figured he would be lucky to finish the first round of the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am with all pars, not three straight birdies.
J.J. Henry had a putt that was picking up steam when it fell for birdie and gave him a share of the lead.
Tommy Tolles had a 10-foot birdie putt on his first hole, and when he saw it hop a few times, swerve left and right and eventually drop into the cup, he had an inkling it might be his day.
The guys at the top of the leaderboard Thursday had something in common -- they made a lot of putts, and they're really not sure how.
"When it's your day, it's your day," Henry said.
Beach ball
Kuchar (Poppy Hills) and Henry (Pebble Beach) each had a 7-under 65, giving them a one-stroke lead over Tommy Tolles, whose round at Pebble included a bogey by hitting one onto the beach, and a chip-in for birdie on No. 17.
They were a surprising group at the top, although it was not unusual to see Vijay Singh right behind them at 67.
The group at 68 included Phil Mickelson, who is off to a good start this year.
Lefty summed up the round -- and the week -- when he discussed how he arrived at his score.
"I had some putts that went in and some putts that didn't go in," Mickelson said. "Just like it was for everybody."
For Kuchar, it was mostly in.
He was at 5-under and would have been thankful to keep it that way.
"I think it was midway through the back nine, I realized that the greens were getting bumpy and I was hoping to par in," Kuchar said. "I knew putts weren't likely to fall around Poppy Hills."
Sure enough, he missed a 5-foot par putt on No. 15, but then hit a 4-iron into 10 feet on the next hole. He followed that with a 6-iron into 12 feet for another birdie, and a chip that stopped a foot away on his final hole for his third straight birdie.
Henry made an 8-footer for par on his first hole at Pebble Beach, which he said set the tone for the day. What capped it off was his 30-footer on No. 16, which swings sharply to the left and picks up steam.
On target
"Those putts sometimes seem to hit the lip and go out," Henry said. "Today, it went right in the middle of the hole. And that's what you have to do to win a tournament."
Tolles was so perplexed putting on the wet, spongy poa annua greens that he quizzed some California guys to figure out the secret.
"I could never get the same response out of any two people," Tolles said. "Guys like Mark O'Meara, Tiger Woods, they seem to consistently post good numbers, but they don't have any answers for you. To be frank with you, I'm glad when the California swing is over."