Stephan Jäger is in the top 5 after an excellent 65 round at the Farmers Insurance Open on the PGA Tour. Brooks Koepka faces challenges in his return.
Stephan Jäger had a fantastic start to the Farmers Insurance Open on Thursday, shooting a 65 to tie for 5th place, close to the lead. Other German players had a tougher day. Thomas Rosenmüller posted a 2-under par 70 to sit at T55, ahead of Jeremy Paul who is even par at T87, and Matti Schmid who shot +1 and is tied at T101 going into the second round. LIV Golf returnee Brooks Koepka also struggled, matching Schmid’s +1 to be T101 in his first tournament back on the PGA Tour. Justin Rose leads after day one at 10-under par.
PGA Tour: Stephan Jäger Nearly Flawless
Stephan Jäger delivered his best start in a long time at the Farmers Insurance Open on the North Course at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego with an almost flawless round. The only hiccup was a bogey on the first hole after his second shot landed in a bunker and he missed the up and down. He quickly regained momentum with a birdie on the 3rd hole. His standout stretch came from holes 7 to 9 where he made three consecutive birdies, moving to 3 under par after the front nine. A highlight was the birdie on hole 8, where he holed a remarkable bunker shot. He carried this momentum through the back nine, adding five more birdies on holes 10, 11, 16, and 17 to finish with 7 under par and tied for 5th place for the rest of the week.
Thomas Rosenmüller had a steadier round, opening with a bogey like Jäger but recovering with birdies on the 9th, 11th, and 17th holes to shoot a 70 and hold 55th place.
Jeremy Paul began his round on the back nine and after three birdies and a bogey on the front nine, he was hampered by three bogeys on holes 2, 4, and 6. A birdie on hole 7 helped him finish even par and tied for 87th.
Matti Schmid also started on the back nine and despite three birdies on holes 10, 13, and 3, four bogeys kept him at +1 and T101 after the opening day, necessitating a strong performance in the next round to make the cut.
Brooks Koepka Experiences Setbacks in Return
For Brooks Koepka, this week is highly emotional. After three years with LIV Golf, he recently announced his return to the PGA Tour and made his comeback at the Farmers Insurance Open, playing his first event since the Valspar Championship in March 2022. However, his round was far from spectacular. After three pars to start, he missed a short putt on hole 4 resulting in his first bog