You seriously cannot have a Fourth Of July at the PGA Tour event without an American at the top of the scoreboard.
For the longest time on Thursday, it looked like a foreign takeover at the 3M Championship.
Hideki Matsuyama (Japan) and Adam Hadwin (Canada) sat atop the leader-board as both went out early at the TPC Twin Cities and shot dueling 64s.
Their scores held up until late in the day when Scott Piercy came to the rescue. After a nine-birdie, nine-par effort, Piercy was in front by two shots after his round of 62.
Minnesota fans showed up early to take in Brooks Koepka, the reigning PGA champion and runnerup at both the Masters and U.S. Open. Koepka was steady for the most part and he’d finish with a four-under par 67, good for a tie for 16th on a day when scores were low.
Koepka wasn’t able to beat 60-year-old Tom Lehman, one of the co-designers of the golf course. “It was a pretty easy 67,” said Lehman, who used his local knowledge to get himself in contention.
Bryson Slow-Motion DeChambeau found himself just four back after his opening 66.
Tony Finau has been in a slump of sorts but found his form on July 4th. Tony joined DeChambeau at five-under, tied for eighth.
One big name who struggled mightily on day one was Phil Mickelson. Wayward shots and penalty strokes left Mickelson tied for 133rd after a not-so-hot 74.
