Advertisement

Golf roundup: Patton Kizzire’s six birdies in a row push him into OHL Classic lead

Patton Kizzire follows through on his tee shot during the first round of the OHL Classic on Thursday.
(Rob Carr / Getty Images)
Share

Patton Kizzire carried some momentum from last week in Las Vegas by running off six straight birdies in the middle of his round Thursday for a career-low nine-under-par 62 and a two-shot lead in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba.

Rickie Fowler, playing for the first time since the Presidents Cup on Oct. 1, showed little rust in opening with a 65.

Kizzire closed with a 64 last Sunday in Las Vegas to tie for fourth, his best finish in more than a year in his bid to finally win on the PGA Tour. Playing in the first group out at El Camaleon Golf Club in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, he finished the front nine with two birdies and started the back nine with four in a row.

Advertisement

His only bogey came on the 18th hole when he drove into a bunker.

“I’ve been playing well recently, and really all year. Just getting everything to click in the same day is the key,” Kizzire said. “Hit the ball well and then seem to not putt well, and then I’ll put well and seem to not hit it well. But today, I put it all together.”

His previous low score was a 63 in the final round in Las Vegas a year ago.

Vaughn Taylor played bogey-free for a 64. Brandon Harkins, a 31-year-old PGA Tour rookie, joined Fowler at 65, while two-time Retief Goosen was in the group at 66.

Defending champion Pat Perez opened with a 67. He was No. 271 in the world when he arrived at Mayakoba for his third event since shoulder surgery. He returned at No. 18 in the world.

The group at 67 also included Anirban Lahiri, Si Woo Kim and Carlos Ortiz, who had the low score among the five Mexican players in the field.

Sean Jacklin, the grandson of British Open and U.S. Open champion Tony Jacklin, qualified Monday and shot 71 in his first PGA Tour event. Cameron Champ, the Californian who was two shots behind going into the weekend at the U.S. Open this year, made his pro debut with a 75.

Advertisement

Buhai’s 68 moves her into Blue Bay LPGA lead

Ashleigh Buhai shot a 4-under 68 Thursday to take a one-stroke lead after the second round of the Blue Bay LPGA tournament in Hainan, China.

The South African birdied four of the last seven holes, including a difficult chip-in on the par-four 12th, to finish at nine-under 135 overall, one shot ahead of Shanshan Feng.

Feng shot the best round of the day with a 67, a score that moved her up 13 places and into second.

First-round leader Sun Young Yoo (74) dropped to third place at five under, while Lizette Salas (73) is fourth at four under. Defending champion Minjee Lee (73) is in a tie for 20th at even par, along with No. 1-ranked Sung Hyun Park (76).

Wiesberger has one-shot lead at Nedbank

Advertisement

Bernd Wiesberger birdied the last hole to take a one-shot lead after the first round of the Nedbank Golf Challenge in Sun City, South Africa.

Wiesberger broke clear of the pack with a superb approach to No. 18 to set up his birdie, finishing with a five-under 67 to edge four other players.

Race to Dubai leader Tommy Fleetwood (73), who can win the season title with a victory at Gary Player Country Club, was six shots off the pace at the penultimate tournament of the season.

Julian Suri, Scott Jamieson, Victor Dubuisson and Brandon Grace (all 68) were a shot behind Wiesberger, who won his fourth European Tour title in China in April.

Defending champion Alex Noren (69) was in a group of four players another shot back, alongside Charl Schwartzel, Hideto Tanihara and Graeme Storm.

Advertisement