San Francisco ? Coming off his first victory in 19 months, Colin Montgomerie appears hungry for more. Montgomerie showed no effects from an emotional victory four days ago in Scotland, matching his career-low score in the United States with a 6-under 64 that gave him a three-shot lead Thursday in the American Express Championship.

Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and nine others were at 67 on a spectacular day at Harding Park, the municipal course along Lake Merced that got a $16 million makeover and held its own against the world’s best players.

Montgomerie looked like the Monty of old with tee shots that split the tree-lined fairways, making the game look simple. The 42-year-old Scot ran off three straight birdies to close out the back nine, then added his lone birdie on the front with a wedge into 18 inches. What mattered more to him was no bogeys on his card.

“If I can hit fairways, I can hit greens,” he said. “And then I can score.”

Woods, who played Harding Park in junior high school when it was covered with weeds, stayed close until he stopped giving himself good chances, dropping a shot on the par-3 eighth and having to scramble for par at the end.