Washington (AFP) – Aldrich Potgieter and Kevin Roy fired course-record 62s at Detroit Golf Club on Thursday to share the first-round lead in the US PGA Tour Rocket Classic. Roy, a 35-year-old American chasing a first PGA Tour title, followed his eagle at the 17th with his eighth birdie of the day to be the first in the clubhouse on 10-under. Less than 10 minutes later, South Africa’s Potgieter put the finishing touches on a round that also included an eagle and eight birdies.
Potgieter and Roy both broke the previous course record of 63, which was matched Thursday by Australian Min Woo Lee and Americans Max Greyserman and Mark Hubbard. “Just one of those days everything was clicking,” said Roy, who had seven birdies in the first 14 holes then chipped in from off the green for eagle at 17 after his five-wood second shot from the fairway rolled off the putting surface. “I was shocked my five-wood went that far,” Roy said. “I had 279 (to) pin. I don’t a five-wood that far, but maybe a little adrenaline or something going on. Luckily just trickled off the back; it was a fine lie and just had to kind of plop it up, and it rolled in like a two-footer. Certainly a bonus,” added Roy, who rolled in a five-footer at the last.
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That caught the attention of Potgieter, who had teed off on 10 and surged up the leaderboard when he picked up five strokes in a four-hole span, starting with his fourth birdie of the day at 16. He followed that with a 10-foot eagle at 17, a 10-foot birdie at the 18th, and a tap-in birdie at the first. He reached 10-under with back-to-back birdies at seven and eight, and was finishing his round at the ninth when he saw Roy’s score. “I was standing on the last hole and I looked at the leaderboard and saw someone else at 10, so I was real eager to make that putt at the last,” said Potgieter, who had a 12-foot birdie attempt but settled for a tap-in par.
Long-hitting 20-year-old Potgieter is also seeking a first PGA Tour title, having come close in February only to fall to Brian Campbell in a playoff at the Mexico Open.
Australia’s Lee, who claimed his first US tour title at the Houston Open in March, had set an early target. He teed off on 10 and opened with a birdie-bogey. He made nine birdies the rest of the way, including three in a row to cap his round. “Everything was pretty solid,” said Lee. “I think the putter was working quite nicely.” After the grind of the US Open and the PGA Championship, Lee was pleased to be on a course that was “quite gettable” — especially after rain earlier this week. “It’s quite nice to kind of play from the rough,” he said. “Not that I was doing it on purpose; I would rather be on the fairway, but, yeah, it’s gettable.”
Greyserman and Hubbard both played late, Hubbard firing nine birdies without a bogey and Greyserman posting 10 birdies and one bogey to join Lee on nine-under. Andrew Putnam was alone in sixth on 64 with seven players tied on 65.
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