Barclays Golf 2013: Tiger Woods and Players Primed for Title Runs After Round 1

The race for the FedEx Cup and its $10 million grand prize is on as Tiger Woods and the world's best golfers partake in the 2013 edition of The Barclays in Jersey City, N.J. 

As a launching point for the 2013 FedEx Cup playoffs, The Barclays represent a unique challenge, as the tournament counts for 2,500 points. 

Plenty of storylines leading up to the tournament were highly publicized, but as the play on the PGA Tour has shown this year, the results are anything but predictable. Look no further than Woods and Phil Mickelson self-destructing in the PGA Championship for proof enough. 

Round 1 of The Barclays is in the books, and while Woods has put himself in a nice position, he is not the only one primed to make a serious push at the top prize as the FedEx Cup playoffs begin. 

Note: Statistics and information are courtesy of PGATour.com.

Henrik Stenson 

Don't look now, but Henrik Stenson is at it again. The Swedish golfer shot a 65 (-6) in Round 1 to place himself in a tie for second. 

As the PGA Tour's media Twitter account points out, this is familiar territory for Stenson, who has finished in second place three times this year:

Most recently, fans saw Stenson fall short at the PGA Championship behind Americans Jason Dufner and Jim Furyk after shooting a seven-under through four rounds. Stenson has finished no worse than third place in his last four starts, per the PGA Tour's Twitter account:

It is not a shock in any way to see Stenson above Woods and other top golfers. He has arguably been the most consistent golfer all year, so expect him to keep making a push for his first Barclays title. 

Kevin Stadler 

Who? 

American Kevin Stadler, son of former Masters champion and 13-time PGA Tour winner Craig Stadler, shot a bogey-free 64 (-7) to take a comfortable lead into Round 2 before rain and darkness delayed the proceedings.

Stadler seemed pretty cool given the circumstances, as he told Jason Sobel of GolfChannel.com:

Stadler has never finished higher than tied for 51st at a major championship, yet here he is leading the way in the kickoff event for a $10 million grand prize. 

If his recent shoot-the-breeze attitude amid the chaos in Round 1 is any indication, Stadler has a level head and a good chance to extend his nice lead in Round 2. No sweat. 

Tiger Woods 

No. 1 golfer in the world or not, Tiger Woods has been erratic in majors. Yes, he has won five of nine tournaments this year excluding majors, but his play in tough situations needed to turn around for him to get a nice jump on his pursuit of the FedEx Cup. 

Cross that off the list .

Woods entered the clubhouse after Round 1 in New Jersey with no bogeys on his scorecard. As Justin Ray of ESPN points out, that's a first for the world's No. 1 golfer:

Perhaps no stretch in Round 1 was more impressive for Woods than holes 14-16. He tallied a birdie on each, as Brian Wacker of PGAtour.com illustrates:

Woods is four under despite dealing with a sore neck and back caused by a soft bed, per the Associated Press (via NaplesNews.com). His momentum was also halted by rain delays, but that did not stop him at all. 

At this point, it doesn't that anything will. 

Follow B/R's Chris Roling on Twitter for more news and analysis @Chris_Roling