The first round of the PGA Tour Memorial tournament immediately produced a four-way tie for the lead, featuring US Open champions Wyndham Clark and JJ Spaun, who shared the top spot with Tommy Fleetwood and Ryan Gerard.
Leading Quartet with Moments of Brilliance
Spaun, who is set to defend his US Open title in two weeks at Shinnecock Hills, delivered a sensational round of 67 strokes, five under par, highlighted by six birdies on the Muirfield Village course in Dublin, Ohio. His approach shot on the 18th, just a foot from the flagstick, particularly secured his share of the lead. 'I think I worked really well mentally today,' he stated, visibly relieved to have fought his way back to the top after bogeys on the 11th and 12th. 'When I gave shots back on 11 and 12, the round could have quickly unravelled. But I stuck with it.'
Wyndham Clark showed a similarly strong performance on the greens: a 45-foot eagle putt from the fringe on the 15th was the absolute highlight, complemented by five birdies for his 5-under-par round. Meanwhile, Ryan Gerard displayed his rollercoaster side: an eagle, eight birdies, but also three bogeys and a double bogey – full drama on day one!
England's Tommy Fleetwood played a clean round with five birdies and no bogeys. His short game was invaluable, especially since he only hit seven greens in regulation – a prime example of how to make your way to the top even through an unconventional path. Fleetwood himself remained modest after the round: 'I just scored,' he said simply. 'Got everything out of the round. A couple of poor shots slipped through, and a few times the ball kissed the flagstick when it should have really gone past. I wasn't 100% happy with my irons from the fairway, but five under par – it couldn't have been that bad!'
Rory and Scottie Battle Through
Masters champion Rory McIlroy also had a real false start. On the par-4 third hole, his approach shot from the fairway landed directly in the water – a double bogey was the unfortunate consequence. However, the world number two quickly shook off this shock and countered with birdies on the fifth, sixth, and seventh, as well as another on the fourteenth. A bogey to finish pushed his round to a solid 71, one under par.
Rory took it sportingly: 'I felt like I played pretty well for the most part,' he summarized. 'Especially after taking the double on the third hole, it was good to play the rest of the round three under par.' He emphasized the difficulty of the course: 'It's a tough course. You have to concentrate on every shot. The greens are already very firm, very fast. If you're above the hole, it gets really tricky. I'd like to hit a few more fairways to give myself more chances from there.'
