SAN ANTONIO, TX. -- It's all about choice. I can go down to the tracks and wait for a train wreck ... or I can follow the 9:40 a.m. pairing to see if David Duval can avoid another derailment. Duval, if you haven't heard, shot a 4-under-par 66 in the first round of the Valero Texas Open. That gives the former British Open champ a good opportunity to make the 36-hole cut -- something that the former World No. 1 has rarely accomplished since his game fell apart some years back. "I've been exponentially better," he said yesterday. "However, I've just gotten nothing out of it so far this year."

Hey, I'm for any golfer who can use the word "exponentially" in a sentence.

I'll also be watching the golf writer's go-to guy, Paul Goydos, who shot 63 to share the first-round lead with three-time Texas Open champ Justin Leonard. Goydos has been a fan favorite since last year's Players, where he lost an island-green playoff to Sergio Garcia. But do you know how long it has been since Goydos has held a first-round lead? Ten years. A decade! (Check your Golf Almanac. Goydos led the 1999 U.S. Open, finishing T-12 after four rounds.)

Tomorrow, if he comes through, we'll re-visit the second-round leads of Paul Goydos. Bring your notebook.