Paul Goydos fired a nine-under-par 62 to take the first-round lead at the Hoag Classic on Tour #6, one shot clear of Zach Johnson and Brian Gay.
Paul Goydos set the pace on day one of the Hoag Classic on Tour #6, carding a flawless nine-under-par 62 to claim the outright lead after the opening round. The American played all 18 holes without a single bogey, registering nine birdies across his round to finish one shot ahead of the chasing pack in a tournament that produced low scoring throughout the field.
Zach Johnson and Brian Gay share second place at eight under par, each signing for a 63. Johnson’s round featured nine birdies and only one dropped shot, while Gay kept his card equally clean — six birdies and an eagle at the par-five 18th hole, with no bogeys. Bo Van Pelt and David Duval are part of a large group at six under. Van Pelt was bogey-free throughout, making six birdies. Duval’s 65 was built on a different foundation: three birdies and two eagles — one at the par-four 6th and another at the par-five 15th — offset by a single bogey.
Hoag Classic Round 1: The course plays generously — but punishes mistakes
The par-five 15th hole proved to be the round’s defining feature on Tour #6, playing as the easiest hole on the course with an average score of 4.24 and 53 birdies recorded by the 78-player field. Eagles on that hole came from Tim Petrovic, Stewart Cink, Ken Duke, and Billy Mayfair, among others. The par-fives at 3 and 18 were similarly generous, both yielding a high number of birdies. Hole 5, a par-four, was the day’s hardest test, averaging 4.13 with 17 bogeys recorded.
Freddie Jacobson of Sweden and New Zealand’s Steven Alker are tied for fourth at seven under par, both carding 64s. Jacobson played an error-free round with seven birdies and no dropped shots. Alker was equally aggressive with nine birdies, though two bogeys kept him from matching Goydos’s total.
At T9 and five under par, a group of seven players includes Stewart Cink and David Toms for the Americans. Cink posted two eagles — at the par-five 3rd and par-five 15th — alongside three birdies, though two bogeys tempered his scorecard. Toms delivered one of the cleaner cards in the group, with five birdies and no dropped shots for a 66.
John Daly, sitting at four under par alongside a large T21 group, added some variety with an eagle at the par-five 3rd to go with five birdies, but three bogeys limited the damage to a 67. Fellow Americans Billy Andrade, Tag Ridings, Mark Wilson, and Ken Duke also finished the day at four under.
Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke and England’s Van Phillips both completed their rounds at two and three under par respectively, each posting steady but unspectacular days. Germany’s Alex Cejka and Bernhard Langer are tied at T21 on four under par, both carding 67s. Cejka made five birdies and one bogey, while Langer matched that birdie count with the same single dropped shot.
At the other end of the field, Jay Haas struggled to a five-over-par 76 — the day’s worst round — with a double bogey at the 7th hole among his four bogeys and one double.
With two rounds remaining in the three-round event, Goydos holds a one-shot advantage, but the leaderboard is tightly packed and conditions remain favorable for low scoring.
This article was created with the help of AI and editorially reviewed.