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Five straight birdies helped Scotland’s Martin Laird into a share of second spot as American David Lipsky took the first-round lead in the Procore Championship.
Laird started with a bogey at the Silverado North Course in Napa, but reeled off his five successive birdies from his third hole, adding another at the ninth to reach the turn at five-under-par.
He added one more birdie on the fifth – his 14th hole – to card an opening 66, one behind world No 277 Lipsky in the first of eight FedEx Cup autumn events.
Laird hits from the ninth fairway at the Silverado Resort North Course
Lipsky is winless in 104 events since joining the PGA Tour in 2022 but finished the first day of this tournament at seven-under-par.
“Sometimes you have to realise golf can be fun, and I think I sort of forgot that along the way as I’m grinding it out,” Lipsky said. “You’ve got to put things in perspective, take a step back. Sort of did that and it seems like it’s working out.”
Patton Kizzire carded four birdies in five holes to briefly move alongside Lipsky, but a bogey at 17 dropped him back alongside Laird at six-under-par.
They are one clear of a group including Mark Hubbard who mixed nine birdies either side of a triple bogey and a bogey in his opening 67.
“There was a lot of good stuff out there today,” Kizzire said. “I stayed patient and just went through my routines and played well, one shot at a time. I’ve really been working hard on my mental game and I think that allowed me to rinse and repeat and reset and keep playing.”
Defending champion Sahith Theegala had to scramble for much of his round of 69.
Wyndham Clark, who won the U.S. Open in 2023 and the AT&T at Pebble Beach in February, had a 70.
Max Homa shot 71. The two-time tournament champion and a captain’s pick for the President’s Cup in two weeks had two birdies and overcame a bogey on the par-4 first.
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