A first glance at the Thursday leaderboard from the 103rd PGA Championship shows that Corey Conners had one heck of a great afternoon on the windy, nasty Ocean Course at Kiawah Island.
It was one of those “drop whatever you’re doing and head for the nearest television” moments up in Canada. One of their native sons was leading a major championship for the first time.
But as you start with Corey’s five-under par 67 and roll downward, there’s one extremely intriguing name that jumps out at you.
Brooks Koepka.
Yes, Brooks is up there, a pair of shots behind 29-year-old Corey, who’s been getting better and better this season. But this is Brooks Koepka, the one-time majors monster who went back-to-back in this championship in 2018 and 2019.
This is the same Brooks Koepka who couldn’t break and egg last week on the easiest course the Tour has played this season — McKinney Ranch. He couldn’t break 70 and missed the cut — badly at the Byron Nelson.
As for those two shots shy of Conners, Koepka threw those away on his very first hole of the day, the 10th, when he found a waste area (there are no sand traps, they’re all deemed ‘waste areas’) and proceeded to waste some valuable shots. He smacked the steep bank in front of him trying to escape said waste area and proceeded to open his PGA Championship with a double-bogey six on the 447-yard hole, one of the less sinister on this seaside beauty.
“I thought it was all right at 10,” Koepka said afterward in that low, serious monotone that is distinctly his. “A pure mental mistake but it helped get me focused and into the round. When you tee off the back nine, it’s tougher. It’s a tough golf course,” said Koepka who hit just five fairways but found 13 greens and putted just 28 times.
If you’re trying to win this major championship, and yes, they all are, Koepka is not the guy you want to see suddenly finding his game.
But first rounds are simply that, first rounds — a small step on a long four-day journey on a course Paul Casey called “one of the most difficult courses on the planet.” For the record, Casey opened with 71 and any score under par was a really, really good day’s work.
This monster can stretch past 7,800 yards and that would seem to favor distance-obsessed, driver-crushing, rules arguing, Kyle Berkshire-admiring, U.S. Open winning, Masters-floundering Bryson DeChambeau. Indeed, Bryson had a shot at leading this parade. He had it to four-under until he made four-straight bogeys starting at 13. “It was diabolical and dynamic out there,” was how the Mad Scientist described the Ocean Course. “You have to be persistent, consistent and have a lot of resolve out there.” For the record, Byrson hit eight fairways, 11 greens and took 31 putts on his way to an even-par 72 that kept him squarely in the hunt for his second major.
As for Koepka, he had a lot of company at that three-under number. Five others joined him. Young Viktor Hovland, the rising star and the youngster who will no doubt have a lot of fun for the Euros at the fall Ryder Cup, was the first to post a sub-70 number on day one. There was a time with Viktor didn’t have much of a short game. His performance over the first 18 showed he’s put in a lot of work on his weakness.
Keegan Bradley, who won this thing back in 2011, was in that six-some at 69 but we all know what happened to him at The Valspar. Aaron Wise was up there with them. Sam Horsfield was the low Brit on day one and Aussie Cam Davis did something amazing — he shot 69 with a triple-bogey seven on his card. Botched up the par four sixth he did.
That was it — seven guys managed to break 70 — a solid accomplishment on a course that totally devoured most of the world’s Top Ten players.
No. 1 Dustin Johnson couldn’t get anything going — a familiar theme lately for D.J., who missed the cut at The Masters and may make it two straight missed cuts in majors after he signed for 76. No. 2 Justin Thomas was only a shot better (75). He played with Brooks and Rory McIlroy and McIlroy (No. 7), the pre-tournament favorite, had nothing going with his 75.
World No. 3 John Rahm got in late in the afternoon at even par (72), No. 4 Xander Schauffele shot 73.
Defending champion Collin Morikawa would have been up there with Conners if he could putt. Three misses inside five feet were costly but he still managed to shoot 70 thanks to that magnificent iron game of his.
Eighth-ranked Patrick Reed’s short game wasn’t enough to keep him from shooting 74 while No. 9 Tyrrell Hatton kept his head above water with a nice 71. Webb Simpson (No. 10) joined the 75 club.
As you can see, this one’s not for the faint-of-heart out there. It’s rough and rugged and disaster lurks everywhere.
As for Conners, the leader, what made his round even more impressive was the fact he played late, in the strongest winds.
The winds are supposed to blow even harder today — bad news for the afternoon guys and Koepka is one of them.
Game on, wind’s on, bogeys (or worse) are waiting for those who make mistakes.
This is going to be one really fun major.
Friday Morning Update: Corey Conners’ lead didn’t last long as the second round got underway. He started on the back nine and it turned into a bogey-fest. He bogeyed five holes, including four straight starting at the 12th. Birdies on the two par fives saved him from total humiliation as he shot three-over, fell back to two-under for the tournament as he made his way to the front nine.
