Tom Byrum opened with a 66 at Sherwood Country Club to secure an early one-shot lead at the Invesco QQQ Championship.
Byrum finished his first day in Thousand Oaks, California with just one bogey offset by seven birdies, including five gains in a six-hole stretch (Nos. 12-17) to pull into the top spot at 6 under.
“Just got on a nice roll, made some nice putts and made some good shots and just capitalized on it,” said Byrum, when asked about his back-nine birdie binge.
“It was just what you write up out there, you know? Picture that shot, hit it and go knock it in. It works out when you can do that.”
Scott Parel closed with a 4-under 32 en route to a 67, good for solo-second at 5 under, one clear of a five-player logjam at 4-under par 68, which included big names Miguel Angel Jimenez, Bernhard Langer, and Jesper Parnevik, alongside David McKenzie and Michael Bradley.
“Played good, just didn’t make a lot of putts early on but made a nice eagle. That was a good three perfect shots. That was nice to finally get something going,” said Langer, the Charles Schwab Cup points leader.
“Played solid, just didn’t make any outstanding putts here and there, but it’s not that simple.”
Five more players were T8 at 3 under, including Vijay Singh, Colin Montgomerie, Bob Estes, Glen Day, and Jeff Maggert.
2018 Invesco QQQ Championship
First Round: The Top 5
1. Tom Byrum -6
1. Scott Parel -5
3. David McKenzie -4
3. Michael Bradley -4
3. Jesper Parnevik -4
3. Bernhard Langer -4
3. Miguel Angel Jimenez -4
