CMSC | -0.39% | 24.64 | $ | |
RBGPF | 0.02% | 63.01 | $ | |
SCS | -2.73% | 12.47 | $ | |
AZN | -0.48% | 76.95 | $ | |
BTI | -0.52% | 34.71 | $ | |
GSK | -0.05% | 37.98 | $ | |
BCC | 0.19% | 133.91 | $ | |
BCE | -0.33% | 33.21 | $ | |
NGG | 0.23% | 66.44 | $ | |
RIO | -1.54% | 64.49 | $ | |
RYCEF | -0.28% | 7.27 | $ | |
RELX | -0.43% | 46.82 | $ | |
CMSD | -0.69% | 24.76 | $ | |
VOD | -0.95% | 9.46 | $ | |
JRI | -0.15% | 13.05 | $ | |
BP | -0.86% | 31.31 | $ |
'Idiot' Schauffele cards quadruple bogey at Zozo Championship
Double major winner Xander Schauffele called himself "an idiot" after carding a quadruple-bogey eight on an opening day to forget at the PGA Tour's Zozo Championship in Japan on Thursday.
Schauffele's three-over 73 left him 10 strokes behind the first-round leader, American Taylor Moore, who had an eagle on the 18th on his way to a 63.
The 2024 US PGA and British Open champion Schauffele found that his wayward tee shot on the par-four ninth at Narashino Country Club had wedged itself among tree roots.
He attempted twice to hit the ball but failed to dislodge it and looked set to take a third swipe at it before shaking his head, laughing and opting to take a penalty drop for an unplayable lie.
"I wanted to take a photo of it almost, how bad it was," said the 30-year-old American.
"For me to think I can do anything definitely got me in a hole there," he said.
"I should have just taken an unplayable, but I was an idiot and tried to hit it. Then I was stubborn and tried to hit it again, then finally took an unplayable."
The eight was the only blemish on an otherwise uneventful three-over card which had one birdie and 16 pars.
"Overall it was pretty low stress for most of the day," he said after finishing in a tie for 70th.
"Like 85 percent of the day was not very stressful."
Schauffele was not the only big name to struggle on a tough day in Chiba, near Tokyo.
Defending champion Collin Morikawa opened with a birdie three, but a bogey on the fourth hole and a double bogey two holes later on the par-five sixth set him back before he recovered with three more birdies for a one-under par 69.
"I just kind of went through a little lull, missed a couple numbers, started missing some fairways," said Morikawa.
"Out here if you miss the fairways, it just plays a little bit tougher and you just can't get close to the pins."
Japan's Olympic bronze medallist and home crowd favourite Hideki Matsuyama carded five bogeys and four birdies in a topsy-turvy one-over 71.
Moore's 63 gave him the solo lead, one stroke ahead of Americans Max Greyserman and Eric Cole and Colombia's Nico Echavarria who all carded 64.
O. Joergensen--BTZ