CROMWELL, Conn. — Scottie Scheffler and Tom Kim gorged themselves on pizza to get their shared birthday celebration out of the way in which earlier than turning their focus to golf this week.
After they tee it up on the large day, they’ll be preventing for the lead on the Vacationers Championship.
Kim shot an 8-under-par 62 on Thursday within the first spherical on the TPC River Highlands, good for a two-stroke lead within the remaining restricted subject, no-cut signature occasion on this yr’s PGA Tour schedule. Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 participant, was tied for sixth, three photographs again.
Kim will flip 22 on Friday, and Scheffler is strictly six years older. The Dallas-area residents marked the event prematurely by heading about 30 miles south to Sally’s — a New Haven establishment.
“I had a variety of pizza,” Kim mentioned. “I wouldn’t try this in a event, however it’s my birthday and it’s form of a convention. Me, Scottie, we have now the identical birthday, so we had an early birthday celebration.”
Kim birdied the final two holes to separate himself from the 4 gamers tied at minus-6 on the 6,835-yard, par-70 course: Rickie Fowler, Akshay Bhatia, Kurt Kitayama and Will Zalatoris.
Scheffler was amongst seven gamers at 5 underneath, trying once more like one of the best participant on this planet every week after ending tied for forty first at Pinehurst No. 2 — his worst efficiency of the yr. Wyndham Clark, who tied for 56th in his U.S. Open protection, was one other shot again at 4 underneath.
Scheffler has 5 wins already this yr and has solely missed the highest ten twice — together with final week, when he posted his worst end in 9 majors since he missed the lower on the 2022 PGA Championship.
“Positively really feel like I’m swinging so much higher than I did final week,” he mentioned. “It’s good to get right here on some acquainted surfaces and hit some good putts and see some balls go in.”
Kim was even par and tied for ninth by means of 54 holes at Pinehurst earlier than closing with a 76 to complete tied for twenty sixth. On Thursday, with temperatures within the mid-90s and little wind, he had 5 birdies on the again 9 of a bogey-free spherical.
“Clearly a tricky day on Sunday, however it wasn’t like I used to be enjoying horrible,” he mentioned. “It wasn’t a foul week, however a foul spherical value me the week. … That offers me confidence to exit and that truly I’m enjoying effectively and simply making an attempt to maintain using this momentum.”
Kim’s stoop lasted for a single spherical. Scheffler’s could possibly be over after one week. Fowler is hoping to snap out of a season-long skid.
The six-time winner on the PGA Tour has only one top-25 end this yr and none within the prime 10. However he can console himself with the information that issues aren’t as unhealthy as they had been throughout a four-year winless drought that ended final yr in Detroit.
Fowler struck simply 23 putts as he grabbed an early share of the lead Thursday at TPC River Highlands.
“I strive not to return to these instances an excessive amount of,” Fowler mentioned. “Positively not wherever as unhealthy because it was a couple of years again, however some similarities there. Having been by means of that and handled that and in the end coming again to enjoying effectively, I can take care of absolutely anything.”
Fowler saved par after hitting his drive into the tough on the primary gap, and he thinks which may have been the kick-start he wanted. He adopted that up with back-to-back birdies in a bogey-free spherical.
“Typically I’d nearly quite (do) that than birdie the primary gap, as a result of then it’s form of downhill from there,” he mentioned. “So, yeah, acquired off to a pleasant begin. Began to see some balls go in, and making putts form of frees up the remainder of the sport to the place you don’t really feel like it’s a must to be good.”
Zalatoris birdied 5 of the primary six holes on the again 9 — and eight in 10 holes making the flip — to make a short look at 7 underneath. He bogeyed the 157-yard, par-3 sixteenth, flying the inexperienced on his tee shot after which two-putting from 55 ft.
With an 8-footer for birdie and sole possession of the lead on No. 18, Zalatoris pushed it vast proper.
