Billy Horschel, Chris Kirk go out strong on Day 1 of the Tour Championship

ATLANTA, Ga. – Yes, the Tour Championship is golf’s grand finale of the 2013-14 season, but as it’s set in the heart of the south, the college football angle is inescapable. And it starts at the very top, where the University of Georgia’s Chris Kirk and the University of Florida’s Billy Horschel are writing yet another chapter in one of the nation’s oldest, most bitter rivalries.

Kirk and Horschel came to East Lake needing only to win to secure the $ 10 million FedEx Cup prize; most of the other 27 golfers here need help to get their hands on the check. But Kirk and Horschel are doing all they can to make it a moot point; both of them led the FedEx Cup standings after last week, and both are tied atop the leaderboard at -4 after shooting twin 66’s.

“Chris and I both played a beautiful round of golf out there today,” Horschel said. “As I was telling the guys, I’ll take four more rounds of 4‑under par, bogey‑free golf. And I may possibly be taking that to the bank.”

“We both had a solid day,” Kirk said. “Billy’s obviously been playing some pretty incredible golf with winning last week and finishing second the week before. And I’ve been doing all right myself. So it was a comfortable pairing for both of us, I think.”

Neither player carded a bogey all day, and both are set up for a run through the weekend at the no-cut event. So too is Bubba Watson, who played with Rory McIlroy in the day’s marquee group and finished as one of four a stroke back at -3. McIlroy, for his part, rode a moderately bumpy day to a -1, alongside Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, and major bridesmaid Rickie Fowler.

“Today was nice,” Watson said. “I made some solid putts. Even the three‑footers, when you make three‑footers, four‑footers for par, that’s a big deal. Today I felt I hit every putt like I wanted to.”

U.S. Ryder Cup team captain Tom Watson must be cringing at the bottom of the leaderboard; after DFL’er Geoff Ogilvy at +7, Webb Simpson and Hunter Mahan are +4 and Jimmy Walker is +3. Not exactly the kind of tuneup you want heading to Gleneagles.

Friday is likely to be the first day of several with rain in the forecast, so matters could get dicey as the leaders take a run at Sunday. But you didn’t expect $ 10 million to be easy to grab, did you?

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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Facebook or on Twitter.

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