Corey Conners has been working his way into the spotlight on the PGA Tour and now he’s taken a huge leap with the first round lead at the 103rd PGA Championship.
Conners fired a near-flawless five-under par 67 Thursday and stood in the spotlight, all by himself, atop the scoreboard for the first time at a major championship.
On a tough and testy windy afternoon, Conners handled the diabolical Ocean Course better than anyone in the field with six birdies and a single bogey as he finished his work late in the afternoon.
“It was fairly stress-free,” Conners admitted on a day when there was enough stress to go around for most of the field. “I got a lot of putts to go in. I didn’t get myself in a lot of tricky spots and I was able to execute some good shots today. I definitely felt calm out there. It was fun,” said Conners. “It’s fun to hit good shots; it’s fun to give yourself birdie chances and fun to roll in putts.”
The Canadian star who finished in the top 10 at The Masters and The Players, made the turn in two-under and that was with a bogey at the ninth, where he pulled his second shot left of the green and was unable to save par. He birdied the par five 11th then stayed one-under until the difficult 466-yard 15th where he holed a 55-footer for birdie. He followed that up with a nice third at the par five 16th from 156-yards out that stopped four feet from the cup and he took it to five-under then finished with a pair of nice pars on 17 and 18, the two most difficult holes on the course during the first round.
Phil Mickelson Plays Great Final Nine, Shoots 70:
Phil Mickelson’s day didn’t have the best of starts. Lefty’s opening tee shot on the first hole sailed wide left, his classic miss. He’d make bogey there, bounce back with birdie at the third then looked like he was heading for a disaster day with three straight bogeys starting at the fourth. Phil was three over through six and would turn two-over heading for the more difficult final nine.
He then put together one of the best nine-hole efforts of the day. He found four birdies — 10 and 11, 15 and 16 and shot 32 coming home for a two-under par 70.
“I’ve had trouble staying in the present,” Mickelson said of his ability to focus during a round. “Three-over through six. I righted the ship on the down-wind holes. I played the last five, the tough holes pretty well (two-under).”
Despite the difficult of the Ocean Course, Mickelson was complimentary. “It’s very fair even though it’s tough,” he pointed out. His short game was spot on and with a conventional putting grip, made great saves all day. “I was extremely solid inside six and seven feet,” Mickelson said of his day’s work.
Jordan Spieth Bogeys 18th For 73:
Jordan Spieth, like everyone else, was battling hard out there in the Thursday afternoon winds. It was a typical Spieth round, lots of running commentary from one of the pre-tournament favorites and the only man in the field who can complete the career Grand Slam with a victory.
Spieth kept his head up most of the day until he hit a loose approach with a hybrid into the hardest hole on the course, the 505-yard 18th that played dead into the wind.
Spieth, who had his incredible short game on display all day, couldn’t make his par putt from just inside 14-feet and finished one-over for the round.
John Daly Shoot 85:
It’s tough enough for 1991 PGA Champion John Daly to walk 18 holes these days, much less trudge a track like the Ocean Course.
Rough day for Daly on Thursday as he signed for 85 and will be among those going home early. Fortunately for Daly there were three club professionals who kept him from holding down last place. Sonny Skinner joined him with 85, Frank Bensel Jr took 86 blows and Tyler Collett had double-snowmen — 88.
Sam Burns Withdraws With Back Injury:
Sam Burns was the hottest player on the PGA Tour coming into this championship. He won at Valspar and finished runnerup at the Byron Nelson.
But Thursday, he injured his back on his first nine holes. He shot 41 and called it after that, withdrawing from the tournament.
PGA Officials Issue Slow Play Penalty To John Catlin:
John Catlin, an American who plays on the European Tour, became the first player to be penalized a stroke for slow play in a major championship on Thursday.
Catlin received a special invitation from the PGA Of America. He was given a slow play warning from the rules committee on the par-five 16th hole, which was his seventh hole of the day, when he took 74 seconds to hit his second shot. His second bad time came at the third when he took 63 seconds to hit his second shot. Under the PGA of America’s pace-of-play policy, Catlin was given a one-stroke penalty, which turned his par on the hole into a bogey. He finished the day with 75.
Rory McIlroy Botches The Par Fives:
Rory McIlroy’s 75 was largely a result of his inability to score on the par fives at Kiawah.
McIlroy bogeyed three of the four par fives, the second, seventh and 16th. His only birdie came at the 11th.
McIlroy refused to talk about his round afterward.
