Sahith Theegala is the leader at Kapalua after the first round of the year at The Sentry
Theegala leads season opener at Kapalua with 64. Morikawa hits opening tee shot packed with emotionBy DOUG FERGUSONAP Golf WriterThe Associated PressKAPALUA, Hawaii
KAPALUA, Hawaii (AP) — Sahith Theegala made six straight birdies to start the back nine and finished with one last birdie for a 9-under 64 and a one-shot lead in The Sentry as the PGA Tour season began Thursday with beautiful views on the horizon and on scorecards.
The largest field in Kapalua — 59 players consisting of PGA Tour winners and the top 50 in the FedEx Cup — had little trouble on a Plantation course with only a mild breeze and fast fairways.
Collin Morikawa was among those at 65, starting with what he considers one of the most emotional opening tee shots he has ever hit.
The two-time major champion has a strong connection to Maui through his grandparents, who were born in Lahaina and long ago ran a restaurant. He was moved deeply by the deadly fires in August that killed 100 people and leveled a historic town.
So it was no surprise the PGA Tour had him hit the opening shot of the 2024 season, right after a ceremony on the first tee that included a Hawaiian prayer and blessing.
“I can talk about final rounds, last shots, first tee, final group and those in the majors, but that was as big of an honor as I could have had,” he said. “Not because it was the first tournament of the year, but because it was out here in Maui, everything that this week represents for me. It just means that much more.”
He followed that with six birdies and a 3-wood he carved beautifully up to the elevated green for an eagle on the par-5 ninth.
FedEx Cup champion Viktor Hovland, Jason Day, Camilo Villegas and Sungjae Im also were one shot off the lead at 65.
Villegas, who qualified by winning in Bermuda, made the first birdie of the year.
The first foul ball belonged to Jordan Spieth, who piped his drive into the native grass right of the third fairway for a double bogey. Spieth bounced back with nine birdies and was at 66, along with world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele.
Eighteen players were at 67 or lower, and that was to be expected. The Plantation course’s biggest defense is the wind, and it laid down for much of the day. Even bad starts turned out well. Justin Rose went out in 40 and had six birdies on the back to salvage a 71.
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
