FRISCO (Texas) — The PGA of America welcomed golfers to its new home, the Fields Ranch East Course of PGA Frisco. It is the site of the 83rd KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship.
The PGA of America’s new office building has been occupied by the PGA of America since 2022. However, the Senior PGA marks the christening of Gil Hanse’s Fields Ranch East, a Gil Hanse-designed course that has impressed many professionals as they tried to navigate his subtle yet challenging green complexes and strategic bunkers.
Fields Ranch may not be an easy course, but two aces have been recorded during the first tournament round on the course.
Dave McNabb, a PGA Professional from the United States, made history on Thursday in the opening round of Fields Ranch. McNabb is credited with the first ever hole-in one at Fields Ranch. McNabb’s shot was similar to Michael Block’s famous shot at Oak Hill in that he never saw the ball go into the hole.
McNabb told reporters that he saw one bounce, and he picked up his tee. “My caddie Donny (Wessner) says, “It went in!” Good stuff .”
Corey Pavin, a former Ryder Cup Captain, made his own ace at No. 4.
The 1 ace he scored at No. 16 ranks right up there with his 15 career aces. 16 at the 1992 Masters. Pavin’s partner Kenny Perry was present at both incidents.
Pavin laughed and said, “Kenny seems to be my lucky charm.”
The leaderboard is dotted with red numbers, aside from the two aces.
Fields Ranch is a course that favors ball strikers. Padraig Harrington, one of the top ball strikers in the PGA Tour Champions field, led the field with an 8-under-64.
What is the key to Fields Ranch scoring? The wind.
“Because each hole has a hazard on one side, the wind has a huge effect on this course. It really, really has,” Harrington said.
“It was easy because you were relaxed. When you play with someone like Rocco, there is always a little chatter and a lot of fun. It really makes a difference in how you feel when it comes to your shots, and other things. It’s something we as professionals need to constantly remind ourselves.”
Rocco Mediate shared the same sentiment.
When the conditions change, however, the course becomes perfect. The wind wasn’t too bad today. I don’t believe it will be as bad. If you give these guys different irons to use on some of these greens, they will tear the grass from it. It’s been that way for a long time.
Fields Ranch is an excellent place to test the wind, which can be a major factor in North Texas this time of year. The winds are expected to stay around 10 miles an hour or less for the remainder of the tournament.
We’ll see how low the players can go if the wind remains calm. It will be fascinating to see how the players perform this week, with 25 championships planned through 2034.
Fields Ranch allows players to benefit from well-executed shots, but also gets the best of players that don’t commit to every shot. Bob Sowards was among a few players who were thrown off their game plan.
After his first round of 1-under-par 71, Sowards said to reporters: “It was frustrating.”
After being three under par at the turn of the course, Sowards’ progress was halted by a double-bogey on the back nine.
I was pretty angry. I told KB that I was the stupidest person on this property. You should follow your game plan if you are going to create one. I didn’t and paid for it. So, oh, well. It’s good to know that I shot below par, which gives me a better chance of moving forward .”
Over 30 players have red figures in round one. A dozen others are at par. The perfect weather conditions and the fast and firm course could lead to one of lowest scoring senior majors ever.
Steven Alker, the defending champion, shot a score of 2-under-70 and is tied with 18th place after 18 holes.
