Thomas, Kokrak match course record, share BMW lead
Justin Thomas and Jason Kokrak matched the Medinah course record with seven-under 65s to share the first round lead at the BMW Championship on Thursday while a fit-again Tiger Woods struggled to get anything going and finished the day six off the pace.
A shot behind the leading pair were 49-year-old Jim Furyk, Lucas Glover, Brandt Snedeker, Patrick Cantlay and Joel Dahmen, while Rickie Fowler and Australian Adam Scott headline a group of nine on 67, two back on the leaders.
The birdies were flying at Medinah Country Club as an elite 69-player field took advantage of ideal scoring conditions, and both Kokrak and Thomas could do little wrong on the rain-softened course on the outskirts of Chicago.
Thomas turned in an error-free scorecard, highlighted by a storming finish of three straight birdies from the 14th. Jason Kokrak
Kokrak, who is still chasing his first PGA Tour win, had only once blemish, a bogey at the ninth, to go along with an eagle and six birdies.
Their stellar rounds came despite both players appearing out of touch in their warmups.
The second stop on the FedEx Cup playoffs, only the top 30 ranked players after the BMW will advance to next week’s championship at East Lake in Atlanta.
Woods, ranked 38th when the day began, has won two of his 15 major championships at Medinah and he got off to a roaring start with three birdies in his opening five holes, including one at his opening hole for the first time this season.
But the 43-year-old, who pulled out of last week’s Northern Trust Open after the opening round due to back pain, saw his hot start cool off quickly.