Unheralded Kris Blanks holds a one-shot lead following the opening round of the John Deere Classic in Silvis, Illinois.
The 38-year-old, who has never made the cut at this tournament, made 10 birdies on his way to an eight-under-par 63 that was enough to put him ahead of Davis Love III, Matt McQuillan and Steve Marino.
Blanks said afterwards: “It was a good day today for sure. Obviously it was fun to see some putts fall, which I've been struggling with all year.
“It was definitely a positive after making that bogey on four after hitting a poor 9-iron and burying it in the lip of the bunker. I just tried to get back to hitting some greens, and I made a real big breaking putt on the next hole.”
Starting on the back nine, Blanks made a superb start with a birdie at the par-five 10th, and he impressively bounced back from a bogey at the par-four 11th by reeling off three successive birdies from the 12th to the 14th. He parred the remaining holes to reach the turn in 33, before registering his fifth birdie of the day at the par-four first to improve his score further. His second bogey of the day, at the par-four fourth, returned him to three-under, but the American responded in sensational fashion by making birdies at each of his five holes to end his first round in impressive fashion.
Love III shot an impressive bogey-free round to end Thursday a shot behind his fellow countryman, with Marino also on seven-under after a round that featured nine birdies and two bogeys. And joining them is Canadian McQuillan who made an eagle, seven birdies and two bogeys in a fine start.
However, well off the pace after round one is defending Open champion Louis Oosthuizen. The South African has opted to prepare for next week’s Major in England by competing in Illinois instead of the Barclays Scottish Open. But he may be regretting that decision after a disappointing day that saw his four birdies wiped out by two bogeys and a double-bogey.
