Corey Conners of Canada has been high on numerous leaderboards recently and this time he’s right at the top.
The 29-year-old Conners, who has finished in the top-10 seven times on the PGA Tour this season, carded a 5-under-par 67 to take a two-stroke lead over six players after the first round of the 103rd PGA Championship on the windy Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Resort in Kiawah Island, S.C.
“It was a real low-stress round because I put the ball in the fairway, hit a lot of good iron shots and made some putts,” said Conners, whose only PGA Tour victory came in the 2019 Valero Texas Open. “I hit the ball solid and stayed out of any tricky spots.
“Obviously the wind was blowing pretty good, but it was similar to the last few days, so I knew what to expect. I could anticipate what the ball was going to do and was able to execute some good shots. I had a great round today.
“I’m excited to be out there tomorrow morning and keep the momentum going.”
Conners, who finished in the top 10 of both Masters this season and in the Players Championship, took the lead when he holed out for a birdie from 56 yards on the 15th hole, and he added his sixth birdie on No. 16, having made his only bogey on the ninth hole.
Brooks Koepka, who won the PGA in 2018 and 2019 but been battling a knee injury that required surgery, overcame a double-bogey 6 to start his round at No. 10, but collected three birdies on each nine and is in the tie for second at 69.
“I made a poor club choice off the tee and got off to a bad start, but that helped me get focused and get my round going,” said Koepka, who also won the U.S. Open in 2017 and 2018. “It’s tough starting on the back nine. You just have to hang on and try to get through there at even par, and then take advantage of some holes on the front. But it’s a good golf course.
“It’s a major. I’m going to show up. I’m ready to play. I’ve been itching to do this since Augusta (at the Masters last month) I mean, I feel so much better now. I don’t need to be 100 percent to be able to play good.”
Keegan Bradley, who won the 2012 PGA, had three birdies in his 69 and also is in the tie for second with Aaron Wise of Lake Elsinore, who had four birdies while finishing on the front nine, No. 11 Viktor Hovland of Norway, Sam Horsfield of England and Cam Davis of Australia, who sank an 11-foot eagle putt on the 11th hole.
Defending champion Collin Morikawa of La Canada Flintridge and Cal, ranked sixth, shot 70 and is tied for eighth with 2005 PGA champion Phil Mickelson, Cameron Tringale of Mission Viejo, Martin Laird of Scotland, Branden Grace of South Africa, Gary Woodland, Kevin Streelman and Sungjae Im of South Korea.
Ninth-ranked Tyrrell Hatton of England is tied for 16th at 71, while third-ranked Jon Rahm of Spain totaled 72 and is in a tie for 31st that includes fifth-ranked Bryson DeChambeau of Clovis.
Fourth-ranked Xander Schauffele of Torrey Pines and San Diego State shot 73 and is in a tie for 41st with Jordan Spieth, who can complete the Career Grand Slam by winning the PGA, and No. 12 Patrick Cantlay of Los Alamitos and UCLA, who holed out from 141 yards for an eagle on the second hole and sank an 11-foot eagle putt at No. 7.
Eighth-ranked Patrick Reed is tied for 63rd at 74, while seventh-ranked Rory McIlroy, who won the PGA in 2012 at Kiawah Island, struggled to a 75 and is in a tie for 77th that includes second-ranked Justin Thomas, who won the 2017 PGA Championship, and 10th-ranked Webb Simpson, while top-ranked Dustin Johnson stumbled to a 76 and is tied for 98th.
For complete results, visit https://www.pgatour.com/leaderboard.html
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