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PALM HARBOR, Fla. -- Matt Every made the best of the worst conditions Thursday at Innisbrook. Danny Lee, finally, seems to be playing good golf in any weather. They were among a four-way tie for the lead after the opening round of the Valspar Championship, a day so challenging that 3-under 68 was the highest score to lead after the first round in the 14-year history of this event. Pat Perez and Greg Chalmers also had 68s to share the lead. Every was the only one among the leaders to play in the morning, when the temperatures were in the mid-50s and felt even colder because of a strong wind. He had three birdies on his last four holes, all of them about 15 feet or longer, and was five shots better than he would have hoped when he teed off. "I would have been satisfied with 2 over today," Every said. "It was tough. This morning you couldnt feel your hands. The wind was brutal." The temperature warmed under full sunshine in the afternoon, though that only helped a little. Only three players broke 70 in the morning, with the average score nearly 3 1/2 shots over par. Eight players broke 70 in the afternoon, and the average for the day turned out to be 72.6. Lee was in the last group, and how he got to Tampa Bay explains why he was one of the leaders. The former U.S. Amateur champion had missed every cut this year, and six straight dating to the OHL Classic in Mexico last November. That changed last week in the Puerto Rico Open, when he posted all four rounds in the 60s to finish second to Chesson Hadley. That got him into the field at Innisbrook, and Lee kept right on rolling. He ran off three birdies in five holes to start his round and was the only player all day to reach 4 under with a birdie on the par-5 first. He dropped his only shot on No. 6 when he failed to get up-and-down from the bunker. "I gained a lot of confidence after last week playing with the finish in Puerto Rico," Lee said. "It really helped me a lot with that confidence stuff, and Im hitting it really well right now. My ball striking is the best its ever been, especially with the putting. I got the new claw grip -- still working great, which is fantastic." Only 25 players managed to break par. Matteo Manassero, who didnt break 74 in four rounds at Doral last week, was in the large group at 69 that included Nicolas Colsaerts and Bill Haas. Russell Knox, who lost in a four-man playoff two weeks ago at the Honda Classic, was in the group at 70. John Merrick made bogey on his last two holes for a 70, while Peter Uihlein made birdie on two of his last three holes, including a 35-foot putt on his last hole, for a 70. This is a big week for Uihlein, a European Tour member, who is No. 73 in the world. He has only two more tournaments to try to get into the top 50 in the world and become eligible for the Masters. Justin Rose, at No. 7 the highest-ranked player in the world at Innisbrook, Luke Donald and 20-year-old Jordan Spieth were among those at 70. More cold was expected Friday morning before the warming trend returns the rest of the week. That means Lee, Perez and the others could face wind and cold at the start of their second round. Lee can only draw comparisons with his game, not the course or the conditions. He had never been to the Copperhead course, regarded by many as perhaps the best tournament course in Florida. He played a practice round Tuesday and jokingly said he would have shot about a 90. "I was shocked how hard it was," he said. "Without the wind and the cold weather -- even were playing in nice weather -- its a very tough golf course." Every traded birdies and bogeys until a strong finish. He made birdie putts of 15 feet on the sixth and seventh holes, and then made a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-3 eighth and he made par from a fairway bunker on his last hole. "Ive played enough to know the first round doesnt matter that much," Every said. "This place is just going to be about not making doubles and taking yourself out of the tournament." Perez played well on the West Coast, earning nearly $1 million, and then took three weeks off. He worked a little with his coach, but felt some rust early, so he was happy to get around Innisbrook at 68. And he was lucky to be playing late. "Definitely the guys that teed off at 7:40, 7:50, they had the hardest of what were going to see this week," Perez said. "I think so far we got the good side." DIVOTS: Angel Cabrera opened with a 72 with a backup set of clubs and rain gear belonging to swing coach Charlie Epps. Cabrera took one airline from Buenos Aires through Santiago and into Miami. The last he heard, his clubs and luggage were being shipped on another airline through Los Angeles. ... Blake Adam withdrew with a hip injury after opening with a 78. Adams missed all but two tournaments last season with surgery on his left hip. Brent Burns Jersey . - The Pittsburgh Pirates plan on keeping promising left fielder Starling Marte playing alongside National League MVP Andrew McCutchen for years to come. Custom San Jose Sharks Jerseys . Still, Milan remained five points behind city rival Inter Milan in the race for fifth place and the final Europa League berth, after Inter beat 10-man Parma 2-0. Meanwhile, Paul Pogba led the way as Juventus stayed on course for a third consecutive title with a 1-0 win over relegation-threatened Bologna. http://www.sharkssale.com/authentic-loga...arks-jersey/.ca. Hi Kerry, Love reading your column and loved watching your analysis on the TSN broadcasts!And were now in Round 2! Bruins! Canadiens! We know all about the great games of the past from the players, the broadcasters and the writers. Erik Karlsson Jersey . -- The Oakland Raiders expect to have starting right tackle Tony Pashos back for Sundays game against the Houston Texans. Joe Thornton Jersey . The goals took Liverpools tally in the Premier League this season to 70, overtaking Manchester City as the top scorers, and left the fourth-place team just four points behind league leader Chelsea. NHL draft lottery losers last year, the Florida Panthers had their number come up this year. In the meantime, chalk up yet another loss for the Buffalo Sabres. The Panthers bucked the odds Tuesday by jumping up a spot and earned the right to the top pick in June. Florida, which finished 29th in the league, vaulted ahead of the last-place Sabres, who had the best odds of winning the lottery held in Toronto. "It means a lot to us. Weve very excited," said Travis Viola, Panthers president of hockey operations. "Were looking to continue to build on our core talent of young players. Its just a great opportunity." It also marked a reversal of fortune for Florida. After finishing last a year ago, the Panthers were relegated to the No. 2 pick after Colorado won the lottery. The top two projected prospects are left wing Samuel Bennett, of OHL Kingston, who finished first in the final rankings released by NHL Central Scouting last week, and OHL Barrie defenceman Aaron Ekblad. The draft will be held in Philadelphia on June 27-28. The Panthers (29-45-8) had an 18.8 per cent chance of winning the lottery, behind only Buffalo (21-51-10), which had a 25 per cent shot. The Sabres continued whats been a losing trend since the season began in October. Buffalos 51 losses were a franchise worst, and the most losses in the NHL since the New York Islanders went 21-51-7-3 in 2000-01. General manager Tim Murray took the latest loss in stride, telling the teams website that he almost anticipated losing out on the No. 1 pick. "Were very comfortable," Murray said. "The other way wouldve been gravy, but its kind of what we thought would happen, and we prepared for it." The Sabres were guaranteed falling no further than second. Florida will have the first pick for the fourth time in franchise history. The Panthers are gradually rebuilding. They made a splash this year by acquiring goalie Roberto Luongo in a trade with Vancouver. And theyll be picking third or better for the fourth time in five years. Their previous top three picks -- defenceman Erik Gudbranson (in 2010), wing Jonathann Huberdeau (2011) and centre Aleksander Barkov (2013) -- all played significant roles this season.dddddddddddd. "Were anxious to put a winner in Florida," Viola said. The Panthers move up marked the fourth straight year in which the last-place team failed to win the lottery. Since the NHL lottery system was introduced in 1995, the last-place team has earned the No. 1 pick only six times. The Panthers had the No. 1 pick in the 2002 and 2003 drafts, but traded them away both times. They also had the No. 1 pick in 1994, when they selected defenceman Ed Jovanovski. The remaining 11 teams maintained their draft order based on the final standings, starting with the Edmonton Oilers staying with the No. 3 draft pick. Calgary will select fourth followed by the New York Islanders. The top 10 picks are rounded out by Vancouver picking sixth, followed by Carolina, Toronto, Winnipeg and Anaheim. The Pacific Division champion Ducks earned a lottery spot by acquiring a first-round pick in a trade with Ottawa, which finished 21st. The New Jersey Devils, who finished 20th, were included in the lottery to maintain the weighted odds, but were not eligible to be selected. The Devils are already slotted to pick 30th after being sanctioned by the NHL. The league ruled New Jersey circumvented the collective bargaining agreement by attempting to skirt the salary cap by signing Ilya Kovalchuk to a 17-year, $102 million contract in 2010. Center Sam Reinhart (WHL Kootenay) and left wing Leon Draisaitl (WHL Prince Albert) were ranked third and fourth among North American skaters, while the top-ranked European skater is Finnish right wing Kasperi Kapanen. The Sabres actually have a shot at holding three first-round picks based on two trades they made this year. The Islanders have to until June 1 to decide whether to hand over their first-round selection to Buffalo this year or next year. Islanders head amateur scout Trent Klatt said the team has not yet determined its plans. The Sabres will also acquire the Blues first-round pick should St. Louis reach the Western Conference finals. 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