Scottie Scheffler participated in a cooking class at Fairmont Mayakoba in Riviera Maya Mexico on Wednesday night, the eve before the World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba. Scheffler is the reigning Masters and PGA Tour Player-of-the Year.
He said, “I mean I get by.” “Last night, it was great to have them show us how to do things. It was certainly a lot of fun.
Scheffler’s game was on Thursday morning at El Camaleon Golf Course. He carded a 6-under 65 without bogey, three strokes slower than Will Gordon in the initial round.
Scheffler said, “I think when your hitting the ball well here you’re going get a lot of looks,” and he enjoyed many tap-in birdies. “No. “No. 9” may have been my longest birdie putt today, and it was almost seven feet long.
Scheffler’s 30 week reign as World No. 1 was over. Scheffler’s 30-week reign at World No. 1 came to an abrupt halt when Rory McIlroy won in South Carolina the CJ Cup. However, a win or solo second would propel him back up to the top. Scheffler’s hot start was matched in part by Viktor Hovland from Norway, who played in the same trio and is now striving to achieve his own measure of success this week.
Hovland, the two-time defending champion, is aiming to be the fourth player to win this tournament in three consecutive years over the 30 year history of the PGA Tour. Hovland began slowly with two birdies, two bogeys and nine holes before he became a real player.
He said, “I just kept telling myself that I was playing well.” “I was frustrated at being just par after the front nine, making some really nice birdies, but bogeying 13 that’s often – I mean that’s two shots right here. It was then that I hit it in the water on 17, which is something that shouldn’t have happened. So I was happy to give away a few shots from that side but very content with the back.
Hovland made four birdies, and he also holed a bunker shot to eagle the par-5 seventh hole. This helped him to score 65 and bring his total to 49 under for El Camaleon’s nine rounds.
Hovland stated that in the past two years, he’s started between 4 and 5 under.
It was a day for lows or to be left behind. On Wednesday, the Tour used preferred lies to cover the fact that the course was softened by more than an inch of rain. Not only did the big guns take advantage, but so did other players. Will Gordon, a second-year Tour pro and the 2019 SEC Player-of-the-Year out of Vanderbilt, shot 9-under-62 to become the 2019 SEC Player-of-the-Year. Gordon, who turned pro in the same year that Scheffler and Hovland, is still looking for his first Tour title.
Will Gordon, United States, plays his shot from the 14th Tee during the World Wide Technology Championship at Club de Gold El Camaleon on November 3, 2022 in Playa del Carmen. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images).
While he earned his Tour card in 2020-21, he was 159 last in FedEx Cup standings. He also needed to continue seasoning on Korn Ferry Tour. The 26-year old scored his first professional win at the Albertson Boise Open last season to make it back to the big leagues.
John Rollins, Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio’s president, stated that Will’s biggest achievement was to realize how great he really is. “I think he is finally beginning to understand that and sort of get his feet under him. This season, expect some great things from Will Gordon.
So far, so good. He has made it to the top in four of his starts and played in nine consecutive tournaments. Gordon’s impressive length off the tee combined with a well-tuned putter – he took only 25 putts – made him a winner in the first round.
He said, “I don’t know what the next week holds, nothing’s promised or given, so I’ve got to keep trying to get it.”
