After day one at The Northern Trust, a surprise foursome sits atop the leaderboard at Ridgewood Country Club.
Jamie Lovemark, Kevin Tway, Vaughn Taylor, and Sean O’Hair – all of whom are ranked outside the top 100 in the Official World Golf Rankings – posted matching cards of 5-under 66 to share the 18-hole lead in Paramus, New Jersey.
Lovemark and Tway signed for identical scorecards with six birdies against one bogey, while Taylor offset three bogeys with a field-best eight birdies. O’Hair started with a bogey on No. 1 but finished clean the rest the way while carding an eagle and four birdies, highlighted by a final gain on No. 17 to join the lead group.
“I feel like some of the things I’m working on in my swing, just really starting to feel a little bit more shallow which is helping my long irons and my fairway woods,” said O’Hair, who is No. 121 in the standings.
The surprise foursome was one clear of a 14-player group at 4 under 67 – two of whom included defending champion Dustin Johnson, and three-time major winner Brooks Koepka.
Johnson overcame a triple bogey-8 on the par-5 17th (his 9th hole) by carding an additional seven birdies and 10 pars to sit T5, alongside Koepka, who offset two bogeys with an eagle, while mixing in four birdies and 11 pars.
“No idea what happened earlier today but got it dialed in after the turn. Good range session after the round and ready to go for tomorrow,” said Johnson via Twitter.
Hideki Matsutama, Tommy Fleetwood, Rafael Cabrera Bello, and Paul Casey were among some of the other stars in the T4 group.
Nine more players were T18 at 3-under par, headlined by Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau.
One further back at 2-under par was a traffic jam of 22 more players, including big names such as Justin Thomas, Ian Poulter, Tony Finau, Patrick Reed, Patrick Cantlay, Kevin Kisner, Jimmy Walker, and Adam Scott, among others.
Jordan Spieth was T49 after opening with a 1-under par 70, one clear of Tiger Woods, who shot 71.
ROUND-ONE LEADERS
1. Jamie Lovemark -5
1. Vaughn Taylor -5
1. Kevin Tway -5
1. Sean O’Hair -5
4. 15 Players Tied -4
OTHER NOTABLES
4. Dustin Johnson -4
4. Brooks Koepka -4
4. Hideki Matsutama -4
4. Tommy Fleetwood -4
4. Rafael Cabrera Bello -4
4. Paul Casey -4
18. Phil Mickelson -3
18. Bryson DeChambeau -3
27. Justin Thomas -2
27. Ian Poulter -2
27. Tony Finau -2
27. Patrick Reed -2
27. Patrick Cantlay -2
27. Jimmy Walker -2
27. Adam Scott -2
27. Tyrell Hatton -2
49. Jordan Spieth -1
60. Tiger Woods E
60. Webb Simpson E
60. Bubba Watson E
60. Jason Day E
80. Francesco Molinari +1
80. Justin Rose +1
80. Alexander Noren +1
96. Marc Leishman +2
96. Xander Schauffele +2
96. Pat Perez +2
ROUND-ONE STATS
DRIVING
1. Sam Saunders – 314.9 yards (T18)
2. Adam Scott – 308.9 yards (T27)
3. Justin Rose – 307 yards (T80)
FAIRWAYS
1. Patrick Reed – 14/14, 100% (T27)
1. Chez Reavie – 14/14, 100% (T60)
3. Four Tied – 13/14, 92.9%
GREENS
1. Jhonattan Vegas – 17/18, 94.4% (T5)
1. Rafael Cabrera Bello – 17/18, 94.4% (T5)
3. Byeong Hun An – 16/18, 88.9% (T60)
PUTTS/GIR
1. Vaughn Taylor – 1.385, 18 putts (T1)
2. Jamie Lovemark – 1.400, 14 putts (T1)
3. Bronson Burgoon – 1.429, 20 putts (T18)
PHOTABLE
QUOTABLE
“Renting a house. Got the chef there. Any time — I’ve got the same group of guys that are there in the majors, and trying to be more relaxed about it. I’m a little fresher, which is nice, but try to bring that intensity to the Playoffs. I mean, there’s a lot on my mind. I can get to world No. 1, win the FedExCup. It’s a big stretch, these next four weeks.”
– Brooks Koepka
