Villegas leads BMW Championship

ST. LOUIS, Sept. 5 (UPI) -- Camilo Villegas led after one round of the BMW Championship Friday, becoming the most likely candidate to derail Vijay Singh's bid for the FedEx Cup.

Villegas shot a 5-under 65 over the Bellerive Country Club course in the rain-delayed opening round -- one shot in front of Steve Stricker, Kenny Perry, Tim Herron, Andres Romero and Stuart Appleby.

The 69-man field will play two rounds Saturday.

"I think it's fair," said Villegas. "We all had a chance to play one round and put ourselves in position for the tournament. Get a good night of rest and come back with a good attitude."

Singh won the first two tournaments in the four-event PGA Tour playoff system and began this week with a lead of more than 11,000 points over second-place Sergio Garcia. Singh shot an even-par 70 Friday and was tied for 37th place. Garcia had a 68 and was tied for 12th.

If Singh finishes the BMW Championship with a lead of more than 10,500 points, he will clinch the FedEx Cup and its accompanying prize of $10 million. Even if Villegas wins this week, he would need Singh to drop lower in the field than he was Friday to have a chance of overtaking him in the final playoff event -- the Tour Championship.