Former Buffalo Bills defensive lineman Kyle Williams leads the American Century Championship following Day 1. He is five points ahead of defending champion and heavy favorite Tony Romo, who is tied in second place with former major league pitcher John Smoltz.
Williams shot a 70 on the day, three strokes better than Romo and two better than Smoltz. The ACC is a modified stableford scoring system, meaning different points are awarded for different scores on the hole. You get one point for a par, three points for a birdie, and six points for an eagle. A bogey nets zero points and a double bogey or worse loses two points. Williams had five birdies and three bogeys on his card, plus ten pars for his 25 points. He birdied his final hole to take the commanding five-point lead.
“Well, I’m here holding it down for the 300-plus pound guys,” said Williams after the round. “I may not be there anymore, but I used to be. So I’m a card-carrying member. So big boys can play too.”
Williams was always known as one of the best athletes on the Bills when he played in Buffalo. He was a talented swimmer, pounded the ball in charity softball games and home run derbys, and was known as a scratch golfer.
“He’s got a great swing. He’s a great guy. I’m happy for his score today, I think it’s cool,” said Romo at the end of round one. “That’s the other part, you don’t see a lot of linemen come out and play great golf. And he’s just a rare guy who has a unique ability for hand/eye coordination and to take that to the golf course.”
Former Bills quarterback Doug Flutie is tied for 56th with Bills Hall of Fame WR Andre Reed tied for 59th. Former Bills offensive coordinator & interim head coach Anthony Lynn is 64th, just ahead of former Bills running back Reggie Bush.
You can livestream the rounds on Saturday and Sunday on NBCSports.com or watch on NBC TV from 3 to 6 PM Eastern. It’s rebroadcast at 10 PM Eastern on Golf Channel.