Scheffler headlines bunch at Colonial

LOS ANGELES: World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler bounced back from his missed cut at the PGA Championship to headline a group of eight players sharing the first round lead in the Charles Schwab Challenge on Thursday (Friday in Manila).

Masters champion Scheffler acknowledged it was frustrating to miss the cut at Southern Hills — his first missed cut since October.

But he said he didn't let it prey on him, and came back strong at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas, with four birdies in his four-under par 66.

"You never want to miss a cut," Scheffler said. "I hadn't missed a cut in a while up to that point, so I think it makes it even more frustrating just knowing that I was playing really good golf and I just didn't have it that week."

Scheffler teed off on 10 and rolled in a six-foot birdie putt at the 14th and drained a 40-footer at the 17th — where he was in a fairway bunker.

He added birdies from inside three feet at the 18th and seventh to join the big leading bunch.

That group also included former Masters champion Patrick Reed, former US Open winner Webb Simpson, Harold Varner, Chris Kirk, Nick Taylor, Cam Davis and Beau Hossler.

Reed was five-under through 17 holes but bogeyed his final hole, the ninth.

Among the other co-leaders, Taylor was five-under after an eagle at the 12th, but the Canadian also made a bogey on his final hole.

Hossler, meanwhile, joined the leading group with his second eagle of the day at his last hole, the ninth, where he holed out from 135 yards out in the fairway.

The jam-packed leaderboard saw another seven players a stroke back on 67: South African Dylan Frittelli, Colombian Camilo Villegas and Americans Kevin Na, Davis Riley, Scott Stallings, Pat Perez and Austin Smotherman.

Another 10 players were two shots off the lead on 68.

Source: TheManila Times