Matti Schmid had a strong start at The American Express on the PGA Tour but a late setback pushed him down the leaderboard.
Matti Schmid started strong at the opening round of The American Express tournament on the PGA Tour, carding a 67, 5 under par. However, a double bogey on the 18th hole prevented an even better score. After day one, he stands tied 51st, just two shots off the top 20. Stephan Jäger shot a 71, 1 under par, tying for 118th, while Sepp Straka posted a 72, tied for 131st. Both need significant improvements on Friday to make the cut. Leading the tournament are Min Woo Lee and Pierceson Coody at 10 under par, followed by a chasing group including Scottie Scheffler and Robert MacIntyre at 9 under par.
PGA Tour: Matti Schmid’s Outstanding Round Until the Final Hole
Playing at the Nicklaus Tournament Course in excellent conditions, Matti Schmid made the most of his round on the PGA Tour’s The American Express. He birdied the very first hole after a great drive near the green and added two more birdies on the front nine, both on par 5s, holes 4 and 7. Perfectly positioning his drive on hole 7 put him at three under par early.
His back nine started even better, with birdies on holes 10 and 11, followed by a par on 12 and two more birdies to reach 7 under par. However, on hole 15 he misplayed his second shot and had to take a drop, leading to his first bogey. He bounced back quickly with his eighth birdie on 16, looking set to finish in the top 20. Unfortunately, a costly mistake on the final hole, including another drop and a missed bogey putt, resulted in a double bogey to close his round at 67, 5 under par, tying him for 51st going into the second day.
Stephan Jäger and Sepp Straka Fall Back
Stephan Jäger got off to a rough start on the back nine, with a bogey and double bogey in his first four holes, putting him three over par. He recovered with birdies on 16 and 18, improving to one over par. Another birdie on hole 3 was offset by setbacks, but late birdies on holes 5, 8, and the final hole helped him finish the round at one under par, tied for 118th. He will need