Scheffler has share of Travelers lead
CROMWELL, CONNECTICUT—After denying that TPC River Highlands is too easy, Scottie Scheffler was on pace for a round of 59 on Thursday in the opening round of the Travelers Championship.
Instead, the world No. 1 and defending champion carded an eight-under-par 62, tying Austin Eckroat for the lead in the $20 million signature event, the last of the regular season, where they are two shots ahead of Rory McIlroy, Wyndham Clark and 2023 champion Keegan Bradley.
Scheffler was working on a nine-under par through 15 holes only to settle for par at No. 16 and sign for his only bogey at No. 17 after overshooting the green.
Scheffler, who shot 59 once before in his PGA Tour career (2020 Northern Trust), said the potential milestone didn’t enter his mind.
“When I came out to do my warmup it was still pretty calm. By the time I got to the first tee, it was blowing 20 miles an hour and it was sustained at that for most of our round,” Scheffler said of the conditions. “It maybe went down to 10, to 12 and then it would gust to 30. It was pretty challenging out there.”
The low round came one day after Scheffler said he didn’t believe TPC River Highlands was too easy for tour professionals. The winning scores the past two years have been 23- and 22-under-par.
“I’ve always had a preference for the tougher tests that we have,” he added on Thursday. “That’s always been my preference since I was a young kid. I like the challenge of playing difficult golf courses, and I like the challenge of playing against really good fields, as well.”
Earlier in the day, Eckroat put up a bogey-free 62 highlighted by an eagle-birdie-birdie stretch at Nos. 13-15. The eagle came on a 35 1/2-foot putt.
The 26-year-old won twice on tour last year but is struggling this season, as he ranks outside the top 100 in the FedEx Cup race.
“It’s funny, a lot of Wednesdays I’ve felt really good going into the tournament and then Thursday comes around and it hasn’t been there,” Eckroat said. “I don’t know if it’s just the stress of playing in a PGA Tour event, but this one, it was nice to feel good on Wednesday and then actually take it into Thursday.”
McIlroy continued his upward trajectory after missing the cut at the RBC Canadian Open and tying for 19th at the US Open. He made three birdies on each nine while keeping a bogey-free card.
McIlroy played alongside Bradley, the US captain for the upcoming Ryder Cup.
