LA QUINTA, Calif. — JT Poston shot a 10-under 62 in the first round of the American Express on Thursday to move one shot ahead of Justin Lower.
Poston had nine birdies and an eagle on the PGA West Nicklaus Championship course in the Palm Springs area desert. Lauer is one shot ahead of the 8-under field, which includes Jason Day, Joel Dahmen, Chris Kirk, J.J. Spann and Marty Schmid.
Poston has excelled on the three most generous courses used in the tournament, finishing tied for sixth at the American Express in 2023 and tied for 11th last year. The North Carolina native has excelled in other deserts, winning in Las Vegas last fall.
“When I feel like I'm playing really well, I feel like I've hit all my shots and can hit the ball close to the hole and really take advantage of those scoring clubs,” said Poston, a three-time PGA player. advantage. “I feel like I can make a lot of birdies like I did today, so tournaments like this can come into play. “
Lore shot a bogey-free 63 at La Quinta, including back-to-back eagles.
“I've never done that,” he said. “I don't even think I've done that in a regular game, let alone a tournament game. Yeah, any time you can have back-to-back eagles, it definitely helps with scoring.”
Canadian Nick Taylor built on his victory at last Sunday's Sony Open with a 65 on the Pete Dye Stadium Course. Tony Finau shot 7 under, Justin Thomas shot 67 and Patrick Cantlay shot 68.
Blade Brown, a 17-year-old prodigy playing on a sponsor exemption, shot a 72 in his first career round. After a bogey on the second hole and a double bogey on the third, the high school senior from Nashville, Tenn., calmed down and had three consecutive birdies en route to a 12-par par Finish.
“The first few holes were challenging because my adrenaline was going up,” Brown said. “Whenever that happens, I hit the ball really far, so we’re not quite as close as we want. Unfortunately, a bad shot on the third hole put me in danger. middle.
The American Express is the third event of the new PGA Tour season and one of only two Pro-Am events on the calendar, continuing the event's long history as the Bob Hope Desert Classic.
World No. 1 Scotty Scheffler was scheduled to compete, but withdrew 10 days ago to give an injury to his right hand more time to heal.
Defending champion Nick Dunlap returned to the La Quinta Championship with a 67 to become the first amateur to win on the PGA Tour in 33 years.
“It's great to be back,” Dunlap said earlier this week. “It's nice to know where I'm going in the first week [as a pro]. I don’t have to find everything the first time.
Dunlap, now 21, turned pro a week after the desert victory and jumped directly from the camaraderie and seclusion of the Alabama golf team into the melting pot of the PGA Tour. Although he struggled a bit, he was eventually named the tour's Rookie of the Year after another victory at the Barracuda Championship in Truckee, California.
“I would definitely say it's overwhelming,” Dunlap said. “A lot of things happened to me, both on and off the golf course, and it all happened to me very quickly, some of which I was ready for and some of which I wasn't, so being caught off guard my life sped up a little bit and I was in Here I am living my dream and wouldn't change it for anything, but it doesn't happen easily.
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