US Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson made six straight birdies amid a 10-under-par 62 and is tied for the lead with Sweden’s Alex Noren after one round of The American Express tournament in California.
Johnson and Noren each played their first rounds at La Quinta Country Club, one of three courses used for this week’s tournament. Players will also play a round at PGA West’s Pete Dye Stadium Course and Nicklaus Tournament Course before a 54-hole cut. The Stadium Course will host Sunday’s final round.
Johnson, 47, and Noren, 41, have a one-stroke lead on Rico Hoey of the Philippines (63, Nicklaus) and South Africa’s Christiaan Bezuidenhout (63, La Quinta).
Not far behind at eight-under 64 are the likes of Xander Schauffele, Patrick Cantlay and 2021 American Express champ Si Woo Kim of South Korea. All three also played La Quinta on Thursday.
Johnson has not won since capturing the 2015 Open Championship, while Noren has won 10 titles in Europe but none on US soil.
Zach Johnson after finishing with a par on the 18th of his otherwise birdie-filled opening round
Johnson stayed bogey-free and outplayed some of his Ryder Cup team members like Schauffele, Cantlay and world No 1 Scottie Scheffler (five-under 67 at La Quinta).
“They kind of keep me young to some degree. Motivated,” Johnson said. “Just watching them is, to say it’s impressive would be an understatement.”
Johnson, who will play the Nicklaus Course on Friday, said his mindset is to stay where his feet are.
“It’s nice to work again. I haven’t been able to put this much work in a little over a year’s time, so I’m excited,” he said.
Noren had an eagle at the par-five 13th offset by a double bogey four holes later. He added 10 birdies to that pile, including five of his final six holes as he finished on the front nine.
“It helped being seven under, you know, and then making a double to go to five, which is not usually the case,” Noren said. “Being five under, you just have to look at it like a little bit longer perspective. If somebody said you were five under after eight, I would have taken it. Just try to stay positive.”
Alex Noren had an eagle on the 13th en-route to finishing in a tie for the lead
Schauffele’s highlight was a chip-in for eagle at the par-five 11th, but he knew that this tournament was a breeding ground for low scores.
“I imagine someone’s going to shoot lower than eight under. That’s just kind of what guys do out here,” he said. “Once one of us shoots something low, the next wave of guys will do even better. That’s what I expect.”
Justin Thomas, making his season debut, shot a seven-under 65 at La Quinta, featuring a six-birdie run at holes four to nine.
Daniel Berger shot a four-under 68 at the Stadium Course in his first round on tour since the 2022 US Open. Berger is making his return this week after recovering from a back injury.
“I only played 10 rounds in the last six months, so I’m very in the beginning stages of playing,” Berger said. “But, yeah, I practised at home and I was playing well. Obviously, this is great place to start. The conditions are favorable, and the wind is not up, and the greens are pure. So, I figured if there was any place to start a season, this was it.”
Watch the second round of The American Express on from 4.30pm on Sky Sports Golf, with the tournament concluding on Sunday evening. Stream golf and more top sport with NOW.
Get the best prices and book a round at one of 1,700 courses across the UK & Ireland