At TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas, Scottie Scheffler made an eagle on the ninth hole, completing the first nine holes with 29. He finished the opening round of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson with a bogey-free 61 (-10) to temporarily take a two-stroke lead over Rico Hoey and Jhonattan Vegas.

"It's great to play in front of our hometown fans. We love this tournament. It's always been meaningful, so it's great to be back competing this week," said Scheffler, who was in a group with close friends Jordan Spieth (also a Dallas resident) and Si Woo Kim from South Korea (a member at Royal Oaks Country Club, where Scheffler is a member).

After a year off to welcome his first son, Bennett, Scheffler is back. Despite a hand injury suffered at Christmas and surgery earlier this year, he has been consistent, finishing in the top 25 in eight tournaments this season.

But the win has yet to come — a rarity for a golfer who enjoyed a stellar 2024 season with seven titles. Perhaps things will change this week at TPC Craig Ranch, where Scheffler made his PGA Tour debut in high school.

With the course softened by the rain, Scheffler performed admirably, his irons as sharp as those of Byron Nelson himself, the legend of the tournament he was playing in.

At hole 3, his approach shot from just 1.5m to the flag opened up a string of 4 consecutive birdies. Meanwhile, his longest putt was 4.8m at hole 8. At hole 9 par 5, with a distance of 223m, he used the number 3 wood to hit the ball just 1.2m from the flag and easily scored an eagle, completing the last 7 holes of the first half of the course with a score of (-7).

When asked what his best shot of the day was, Scheffler answered without hesitation: "The 3-wood on hole 9. I was wavering between two clubs, then I hit a perfect 3-wood. That was probably the best shot of the day."

On the back nine, Scheffler slowed down with three consecutive pars. However, he birdied the 13th hole with a 12-foot putt to return to the top of the leaderboard. At the par-3 17th, he closed the distance to the flag to just 2 feet and made another easy birdie. At the 18th, Scheffler had another tap-in birdie, after nearly making an eagle from outside the green with a 24-foot putt.

With a 61, Scheffler looked the familiar image of the Masters, FedEx Cup and three-time World Golfer of the Year. Was he eager to win?

The answer is no. “I don’t think I’m too nervous or eager,” Scheffler said. “I had a good start today, but there are still three rounds to go. Now I just want to go home, rest and prepare for tomorrow.”

For Scheffler, there is certainly no better place than home to open an "account" this season.

Source: https://tienphong.vn/scottie-scheffler-danh-61-gay-vong-mo-man-cj-cup-post1739000.tpo