INZAI CITY Japan Brendan SteeleTo take the first-round lead at PGA Tours Zozo Championship, she finished with four consecutive birdies.
Everybody says if you birdie 18, dinner tastes better, Steele said. But four consecutive birdies is really nice and makes you feel good.
It was a happy reunion at the Accordia Country Clubs Golf Narashino Country Club where Steele was the runner up a year ago in that same tournament behind the winner Hideki Matsuyama.
Steele said, I love this course. I loved the course last season — it was great to be back.
The Zozo Champion is the only PGA Tour Japan event with a purse of $11,000,000. This year there are no COVID-19 crowd limits.
Steele stated, It was nice for us to be in a position to get out of the hotel a bit this year and to enjoy the culture a bit, So, Ive enjoyed this a lot.
It was a huge day for American citizens as well.
Adam SchenkThis was a shot back from a 65-degree round on a rainy course on the outskirts Tokyo. Sam Ryder, Matthew NeSmith, Keegan BradleyThey were both back.
Three more Americans were also left behind: Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele, Maverick McNealy.
Matsuyama, the reigning champion, won by five shots a year back. Matsuyama started slowly in front of a home crowd with a score of 71.