Patrick Cantlay rode his irons and putter to an opening 7-under-par 64 on Thursday, giving him a one-shot lead after 18 holes at the Genesis Invitational in Pacific Palisades, Calif.
Cantlay finished with more birdies (eight) than fairways in regulation (seven of 14) but recovered nicely and birdied three of the four par-3 holes at Riviera Country Club. He sits just ahead of Luke List and Australians Cam Davis and Jason Day, who shot rounds of 65.
Jordan Spieth, Will Zalatoris and Tom Hoge are two off the pace at 66 as the PGA Tour began its third signature event of the 2024 season.
“Obviously got off to a great start,” Cantlay said. “Our group had good momentum, (Spieth) and I were a bunch under on the front nine and, you know, a day where I putted really, really well, made every putt I should have and a couple longer ones.”
That included a 26-footer for birdie at the par-4 eighth hole and a 28-footer that dropped for his final birdie of the day at the par-3 14th.
Cantlay ranked third in the field in strokes gained on approach and second in strokes gained putting. However, he did manage to hit a tree with his tee shot at the par-3 16th, and his second shot landed in a bunker, leading to his only bogey of the day.
“You know, I got up and down for bogey, it was a good up and down,” Cantlay said. “Obviously a spot I’ve never been. I’ve been on most places on this golf course, but started off today eight birdies and one bogey, great start.”
Of the three players tied for second, List and Day went bogey-free with six birdies apiece. List has two PGA Tour wins to his name, most recently last October in a playoff at the Sanderson Farms Championship.
“It replicates major championship golf so you have tough conditions around the greens, ball-striking’s at a premium,” List said of Riviera. “Anytime you can get a golf course that you like, it gives you a little extra pep in your step a little bit playing.”
As for Day, a three-birdie run at Nos. 9-11 got his round going. Day didn’t win on tour for five years while battling injuries before returning to the winner’s circle last May at the AT&T Byron Nelson.
“To be able to kind of get that back in the rearview mirror now where I can kind of focus on actually practicing and putting good work in, it’s been nice because for a moment there I just didn’t know if it was really going to pan out for me and I thought maybe it’s kind of like I’m at the end of it in regards to my playing days,” Day said.
“But it was nice to be able to kind of put that work in, see the body react the way it has and be able to practice and like through time and effort, that’s when the good play starts to come back.”
Tournament host Tiger Woods played his first round at an official PGA Tour event since withdrawing from the Masters 10 months ago and undergoing ankle surgery. He posted five birdies and six bogeys en route to a 1-over 72.
“A lot of good and a lot of indifferent,” Woods said of his round. “It was one or the other. I don’t know how many pars I had, wasn’t many. I was either making birdies or bogeys and just never really got anything consistent going today.”
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler is part of a group at 3-under 68, while Rickie Fowler, Tony Finau, Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa and Norway’s Viktor Hovland are among those tied at 1-under 70.
Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy made a double bogey and a triple bogey on back-to-back holes to plummet to a 3-over 74, tied for 64th out of 70 golfers. His second shot at the par-3 16th hole did not get over a tall bunker wall, and his putt for bogey sped past the cup, leading to a three-putt triple bogey.
There will be a 36-hole cut on Friday to include the top 50 players and ties, plus anyone within 10 strokes of the lead.
–Field Level Media
