ATLANTA -- Tiger Woods doesnt understand why theres so much fuss over his friendship with Rory McIlroy. . He speaks so highly of the 23-year-old from Northern Ireland that some publications have referred to it as a bromance. And then theres Greg Norman, who said it was a sign of insecurity and that Woods is intimidated by McIlroy, who has won three of his last four events dating to the PGA Championship. There also was an interview in a London newspaper how McIlroy dishes it out as well as he takes it during his banter with Woods. "You probably dont believe this, but I get along really well with a lot of guys out here," Woods said Thursday after opening with a solid round of 4-under 66 to share the lead with Justin Rose at The Tour Championship. "Rory is no different. I give it, they dish it and we have a great time. This is a fraternity out here. Thats one of the great things about being out here for 17 years. You get to know the guys quite well." One guy looked fairly familiar, especially at East Lake. Woods has won and been runner-up three times in his last four trips to the tree-lined course about 10 miles away from downtown Atlanta. He knows how important it is to keep the ball in play, and to keep the ball below the hole. Woods wasnt perfect, but he managed six birdies on a warm day when the sun finally broke through cloud cover. "I probably could have gotten a couple more out of it," Woods said about his opening round. "But I was probably right on my number." Rose chipped in from about 20 yards short of the green on the 14th, the start of three birdies over his last five holes. It ended with an even bigger surprise. From the back of the green on the 221-yard closing hole, Rose faced a 50-foot putt with about 20 feet of break, and watched it snap to the right over the final few feet and into the hole. He is No. 24 in the FedEx Cup standings, and a long shot to win the FedEx Cup and the $10 million bonus. "Its a position of having nothing to lose, really," Rose said. "Last year, I didnt factor in the tournament, and this year maybe being a little bit looser out there is going to help me. I think Ive only got this tournament on my mind. A lot of the other guys have two trophies on their minds." For Woods, it was a start toward what he hopes is a third FedEx Cup title in the six years it has been around. McIlroy, who opened with a 69, also has his eyes on the title. Even on a relatively mild day, East Lake is not a course where its easy to post super low numbers or run away from the field. The top 18 players on the leaderboard were separated by only three shots after one round. The advantage in this FedEx Cup goes to the top five seeds -- McIlroy, Woods, Nick Watney, Phil Mickelson and Brandt Snedeker, all of whom only have to win the Tour Championship to capture the FedEx Cup. Snedeker was in the group at 68, while Mickelson joined McIlroy at 69. Watney was bringing up the rear in the 30-man field with a 75. Steve Stricker had the only bogey-free round and was at 67, along with Georgia Tech alum Matt Kuchar, Bo Van Pelt and Scott Piercy, the last man into the field. Piercy was at 5 under until he got tripped up in the rough behind the 18th green and took double bogey. Piercy has a mathematical chance to win the $10 million, though the odds are ridiculously long. For starters, he would have to win and McIlroy would have to finish last. "My chances are slim and none. I think slim is about to leave the building," Piercy said. "If I win, I finish second (in the FedEx Cup.). Its still a million-and-a-half for first place, and another $3 million for the FedEx, so Ill take $4.5 million. That would be sweet." Theres something for everyone at this Tour Championship, mostly money. For the fans, Thursday offered yet another pairing of golfs two hottest properties. This was the fifth time in the FedEx Cup playoffs that Woods and McIlroy have been in the same group, and while Woods keeps winning the individual battles -- this was the fourth time he had the lower score while playing with Boy Wonder -- McIlroy is 2-0 when it comes to winning playoff events. As usual, Woods didnt read too much into that. "I enjoy playing with Rory," he said. "Hes a great kid. Over the years, there are certain pairings for me that Ive enjoyed, and Rory is one of them." A boisterous gallery lined the fairways and crowded behind every green to see the latest edition of Tiger and Rory, and they didnt disappoint. McIlroy is playing East Lake for the first time, and he struggled with the Bermuda rough around the greens. "If you dont hit fairways, its hard," McIlroy said. "If you hit the ball in the rough here, its very, very difficult to get any control on your ball." Woods holed a 20-foot birdie putt on the second hole and stuffed a wedge into 5 feet on the third to get on track. He made bogey from the bunker on No. 4, and took another bogey on the 14th when his drive sailed into the rough. The Bermuda grass isnt high, but its thin enough for the ball to sink to the bottom and make it difficult to reach the green, much less keep it on the green. "Trouble is just right there in front of you," Woods said. "Its very simple, but its hard. Its rare that you see guys go low here, but its very simple. Really, not a lot of trouble out here, but guys just have a hard time getting it low out there." McIlroy didnt feel he was at a disadvantage playing the Tour Championship for the first time. He saw the course as Woods did -- keep it in play, keep the ball below the hole. "I felt like I hit the ball pretty good," McIlroy said. "So just go out there tomorrow and try to play the same way, and maybe hole a few more putts and turn what I shot today into something in the mid-60s." [url=http://www.ramsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-johnny-hekker-jersey-ys-77... Hekker Jersey . And Jim Johnson is the biggest reason for the success of that bullpen. Johnson set a franchise record with his major league-leading 46th save and the Orioles beat the Boston Red Sox 4-2 on Friday night to remain one game behind the first-place New York Yankees. . Their patience might finally be paying off. Following a horrific start, Alvarezs bat is showing signs of life. He hit homers in both games of a doubleheader split with Colorado on Wednesday to raise his batting average from an anemic . [url=http://www.ramsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-brian-quick-jersey-me-42.h... . Canada will play for bronze. Deep into second half extra-time stoppage time, Morgan found space in the box and got on the end of a cross from midfield substitute Heather OReilly to head the USA into the championship game against Japan. [url=http://www.ramsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-jack-youngblood-jersey-bf-... Youngblood Jersey . Nadal blew a 5-2 lead in the third set in losing 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, his first defeat to Verdasco in 14 matches. The third-round loss was Nadals earliest exit in a clay-court tournament since he fell to Olivier Mutis in the second round in Palermo, Italy, in 2004. . The rink from Coldwater, Ont., went undefeated at the Grand Slam of curling event and received $14,000 in prize money.(Sports Network) - Brandon Morrow takes the mound tonight for the Toronto Blue Jays as they continue their four-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays. Jeremy Hellickson will get the ball for the Rays. He has alternated wins and losses over his past six starts and was on the losing end of a 4-2 decision versus Oakland on Saturday. The As tagged Hellickson for four runs and six hits in his five innings of work and he dropped to 8-9 in 24 starts with a 3.42 earned run average. The right-hander is 1-1 against the Blue Jays this season and 2-1 with a 3.51 ERA in four lifetime starts. Hellickson has pitched well on the road this season, going 4-2 in 10 assignments, and had a root canal on Monday. Matt Moore suffered a hard-luck loss for the Rays in last nights 2-0 defeat and gave up both runs in the first inning. He lasted six innings, struck out seven and walked three batters. "Matt wasnt really sharp, but he got through it well," Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said. "Only giving up two runs, you would like to believe a starter wins that game. Bullpen did a great job once again. Their (Toronto) guy pitched well too and their bullpen was good." Evan Longoria had one of the five hits for Tampa Bay, which is 1 1/2 games off the pace for one of the final two Wild Card spots and 4 1/2 games in back of the New York Yankees for the AL East lead. The Rays have lost five of their last six games. After taking two of three meeetings with the Yankees in the Bronx, Toronto returned home to open a seven-game residency. [url=http://www.ramsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-kurt-warner-jersey-vl-68.h... Warner Rams Jersey. . Carlos Villanueva and three relievers completed a five-hitter last night, as he fanned seven through six shutout innings for the win. Darren Oliver, Brad Lincoln and Casey Janssen each tossed a scoreless inning of relief, with Janssen picking up his 18th save. "Obviously a well pitched ball game here tonight for all four guys that took the mound," Toronto manager John Farrell said. "Carlos was fighting a low- grade fever all afternoon and during the six innings he pitched tonight, but he was once again outstanding." Kelly Johnsons two-run double in the first inning was all the offense Toronto would need. He finished 3-for-4 and Yunel Escobar added two hits in the win. Escobar is batting .387 with a homer and six RBI during an eight-game hitting streak (12-for-31). Brandon Morrow gets the nod for the Jays tonight and he has dropped two straight and three of his last five trips to the mound. Morrow pitched in Saturdays 8-2 loss at Baltimore and allowed four runs -- two earned -- in 4 2/3 innings. He fell to 7-5 in 14 starts with a 3.06 ERA. Morrow, a right-hander, lost to the Rays on May 14 and is 4-5 with a 3.51 ERA in 14 career games, 10 of which have been starts, against them. The Blue Jays are 3-9 against Tampa Bay this season and ended a five-game slide in this series last night. ' ' '