Leishman’s 62 grabs attention
Marc Leishman left his golf clubs in his garage during his week break from the FedEx Cup playoff and it didn’t change anything. Leishman made 10 birdies in the opening round of the BMW Championship for a 9-under 62 to build a 2-shot lead. Jason Day made the biggest change of his career and had a 64, his best start in 16 months.
The race to the FedEx Cup finale got off to a blistering start yesterday at Conway Farms in Lake Forest, Ill., and no one could top Leishman. The Australian finished third at TPC Boston two weeks ago, did nothing last week except practice putting in the room above his garage, and then ran off seven birdies in a nine-hole stretch in the middle of his round and matched his best score on the PGA Tour.
“When you play golf and all you’re thinking about is making birdies, it’s a lot easier than trying to not make bogeys,” he said.
Day made five birdies on the back nine to atone for a sluggish start in a tournament where his expectations were up in the air. He decided that Colin Swatton, the most meaningful figure in his golf career, would no longer caddie for at least the rest of the year. Day instead used an old roommate from his school days in Australia, Luke Reardon. If that wasn’t enough, he also changed putters.
That might not have been nearly as significant as the good vibes from a 6-shot victory at Conway Farms two years ago. He had no complaints about his lowest score since a 63 in the AT&T Byron Nelson in May, and his best opening round since a 63 at The Players Championship a year ago, which was the last tournament he won.
“A good step in the right direction, especially with having Luke on the bag,” Day said. “Obviously, not having Colin on the bag is something different and I just didn’t know how I was going to play. I think Luke did a fantastic job out there. We worked well together, and hope we can keep that going.”
Charley Hoffman birdied his last two holes for a 64. Jamie Lovemark also had a 64 with a little more style, drilling a fairway metal over the creek to 8 feet for eagle on the par-5 18th.
Jordan Spieth, holding the No. 1 spot in the standings, turned a wild tee shot into a birdie on the opening hole, added a 30-foot birdie from off the green at No. 5 and settled down the rest of the way for a bogey-free 65.
Also at 65 was Rickie Flower, Tony Finau, Keegan Bradley and Rafa Cabrera Bello, while Phil Mickelson played bogey-free and opened with a 66.
The top 30 in the FedEx Cup after this week make it to the Tour Championship at East Lake for a shot at the $10 million bonus.
LPGA: Weather woes
Rain and strong winds forced the final women’s major of the season to be suspended with plans to re-start today as a 54-hole tournament.
LPGA Tour commissioner Michael Whan said the little play achieved yesterday at the Evian Championship in Evian-Les-Bains, France, will be scrapped. The announcement was made after a four-hour suspension.
No player completed nine holes when the round was stopped.
Europe: Two-way tie
Bernd Wiesberger and Richard Finch shot 5-under-par 66s to share the clubhouse lead after a rainshortened opening round at the KLM Open in Spijk, Netherlands.