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GREENSBORO — Golf is a funny game. For Kevin Streelman, it can be downright hilarious, thanks to his caddie.

Michael Collins, 38, moonlights as a stand-up comedian when he's not carrying the bag for Streelman, a 30-year-old Duke alumnus in his ninth pro season.

"I'm a lucky guy," Collins said. "I've had three real jobs in my entire life."

Comedy and caddying don't count in his book.

"Comedy is my therapy," said Collins, who books gigs that coincide with the stops on the PGA Tour. "It's my sofa where I can go vent. Luckily, when I vent people think it's funny."

Collins describes his humor as "PG-13, high-energy, observation-style comedy," and he has played the Comedy Zone in Greensboro. This year, though, he's focused on helping Streelman at Sedgefield Country Club.

So far, so good. Streelman got off to a strong start with five birdies during a seven-hole stretch on the front nine, then 10 straight pars to close out a 5-under-par 65.

"We're having a lot of fun out there," said Collins, who went to work for Streelman earlier this season. "If he has a bad hole, he's like, 'All right, gimme a joke.' We clicked right away. That first week, people were asking us how many years we'd been together.

"You look at Tiger (Woods) and Steve (Williams), or Phil Mickelson and Bones (MacKay). Every caddie is looking for his last boss. I've found mine."

HOME-FIELD PRESSURE: Andrew McLardy is from South Africa, but he's sleeping in his own bed for this tournament. McLardy makes his home away from home right here in Greensboro.

That's been a blessing and a curse.

"It's nice playing at home," McLardy said, "but it's a little more pressure to play in front of the home crowd. It's not like playing in Europe in front of (strangers). There's people watching who know me, and I want to play well for them."

McLardy had an up-and-down first round at Sedgefield: three birdies and six bogeys on his way to a 73.

"I didn't hit enough fairways," he said. "If you're not in the fairway here, it's very difficult."

The Bermuda grass of the rough is higher this year, and McLardy said the ball sinks to the bottom of it.

On the bright side, at least he finished his first round.

"I can't complain about the rain. We needed the rain. My garden really needed the rain," he said. "Getting done today is really nice. I won't have to get up at 5 a.m. to come play. I can lie in (bed) and relax."

ROSE-Y DAY: Justin Rose had the kind of day weekend hackers can only dream about.

Rose hit 100 percent of the fairways (14-for-14) with his tee shots, and was 17-for-18 in greens in regulation.

"The green I did miss," Rose said, "it was on the edge of the green and I putted."

Even a near-perfect day wasn't enough for the lead, though. Rose had a three-putt bogey on the 18th hole and finished with a 5-under 65.

CLARK WITHDRAWS: South Africa's Tim Clark, an N.C. State alumnus, withdrew from the tournament with a nagging nerve injury in his neck.

Clark, who is ranked No. 35 in the world and is 24th in the FedEx Cup points standings, was 3-over through 16 holes when the rain came.

Clark has played the Greensboro tournament five times since earning his tour card in 2002. He tied for sixth last year at Sedgefield, where his college roommate, Carl Pettersson, won.

Clark is in the midst of a fine season. He came in with a career-best 69.8 scoring average, 14 top-25 finishes in 17 starts and $1.88 million in earnings.

Contact Jeff Mills at 373-7024 or jeff.mills@news-record.com