Joined at the hip of late, the two torched soggy Crooked Stick Golf Club in Thursday's marquee grouping in the first round in the BMW Championship. Nearly matching each other stroke for stroke, the two, the only three-time winners on the PGA Tour this season and 1-2 on the money list, joked throughout the round as they charged toward up the leaderboard.  Just two weeks after they energized The Barclays by being paired together in the first two rounds, and just three days after Woods chased McIlroy down the stretch but couldn't catch him in the Deutsche Bank Championship, the two's latest act in the FedExCup playoffs was another doozy.  With seven birdies and an eagle, McIlroy, the world's No. 1 player and first in FedExCup points, fired an 8-under-par 64 to sit atop the leaderboard with Bo Van Pelt, Webb Simpson and Graham DeLaet. World No. 3 Woods, who also in No. 3 in FedExCup points, had nine birdies in his 65 and is tied with Vijay Singh. Three players, including world No. 2 Luke Donald, shot 66.  "We just want to go out there and try and play the best we can, and that's my mindset," said McIlroy, who first played with Woods in the 2010 Chevron World Challenge. "Of course every week you might beat Tiger, you're going to be at the top of the leaderboard. But I'm not going out there with the intention of beating Tiger, I'm just there to try and shoot the best number possible.  "I've always enjoyed playing with Tiger, and every time that we're paired up we seem to have a good time."  Woods isn't about to hand the torch over to his younger rival by 13 years. But he appreciates the talents of the latest adversary to his long-held crown.  "It's fun to play with him, and he's an amazing talent," Woods said. "You watch him swing the club and watch him putt and play, he doesn't have a lot of weaknesses. You can see that in the next decade or so as he really matures and understands some of the nuances of the game, he's only going to get better, and that's kind of fun to see.  "And he's just a really nice kid. This is the next generation of guys coming out. The game of golf is in great hands with him, and he's here to stay."  The two will be playing together again Friday, but they know they can't concentrate solely on each other's games. With recent storms softening up Crooked Stick and just hints of wind throughout the first round, players filled the leaderboards with red numbers. Further, with the ability to lift, clean and place their golf balls in the first round, par was an endangered species.  In all, 40 of the 70 players broke 70, 15 more broke par and only 10 players were on the wrong side of par. The course average was 69.47.  "You get the 70 best players on Tour and you give them soft conditions, you fly a 4-iron in, it's pretty much stopping dead. Guys are going to take advantage of that," said DeLaet, who needs at least a top-four finish this week to be one of the 30 players who move on to The Tour Championship, the final event of the FedExCup playoffs.  Another key for DeLaet was a putter he purchased in Boise a few weeks back. The superstitious type, he hasn't removed the price tag because he's been putting well.  "Some guys were making fun of me," DeLaet said, "but it's been working so I'm not taking it off."  It took awhile for Justin Rose to take off. With four birdies in his last five holes, he shot 67.  "We all knew it was there for the taking today," Rose said. "Playing the ball up, not much wind and the greens being soft and perfect, that's a recipe for low scores. It does make it easier. I had to be patient. I was 1 under for most of my round, felt like I was getting lapped, but finished with three straight to make dinner taste good."
Rory McIlroy (-8) and Tiger Woods (-7) both took advantage of scoring conditions Thursday in the first round of the BMW Championship.