American Bo Van Pelt shot a flawless opening round on Thursday to take a one-shot lead at the AT&T National.
Claim a free £50 bet with Ladbrokes by entering code MAXIMUMBONUS when you register
Van Pelt (7/1 Tournament Outright) completed the tricky Congressional course in a bogey-free 67, and that was enough to see him edge ahead of Vijay Singh, Brendon de Jonge and Jimmy Walker on a day when only 22 players managed to shoot below par.
Starting on the back nine, Van Pelt’s key run came between the 17th and the second hole as he went birdie, par, eagle birdie, and afterwards the 37-year-old told reporters: “I got off to a good start.
“I thought 10 through 14 I had hit a bunch of good shots and had some good birdie looks, but I didn't make any. A 25-footer for par on 15 just kind of kept my round going.
“When you make a putt like that, it gives you a little bit of momentum (and you) feel like you might make some putts today.”
Singh (20/1) will be lamenting a poor back nine that prevented him from taking a commanding lead after the opening 18 holes. The Fijian made a superb start with five birdies and one bogey over the first 10 holes, before three consecutive bogeys between 11 and 13 threatened to derail his challenge. However, Singh pulled it back together with birdies at the 16th and 18th to join de Jonge (20/1) and Walker (33/1) on three-under.
Billy Hurley III (80/1) and Pat Perez (25/1) are a shot further back on two-under, while the likes of Dustin Johnson (12/1), Hunter Mahan (12/1) and Nick Watney (25/1) are among a whole host of players on one-under after the first day of the tournament.
Former world number one Tiger Woods (7/1) is one-over after he made three-bogey and two birdies.