Doug Ghim fired a bogey-free 9-under 62, his career-low in 488 rounds, featuring an eagle at the par-4 6th to take a one-shot lead at the John Deere Classic on Thursday.
“Hit it close. Hit a lot of fairways. Didn’t miss many greens. I had to chip it off a green on 17 so probably hurt the stats. Didn’t get it up-and-down because I had to come over the corner of the bunker,” said Ghim.
“So obviously statistically it will look worse than probably it was. Honestly, hit it so close all day. I probably didn’t gain much any time I tapped in for birdie. I two putted for birdie a couple times.
“That’s just the way the stats go sometimes. I hit it really well. Holed out a wedge. Yeah, I mean, honestly, anytime you can shoot 9-under and not really make a putt it’s always a good sign.”
Ghim, who leads an all-American top-5, holds his first lead after any round on the PGA Tour. His best finish in 162 starts was second at the 2024 Shriners Children’s Open. His best finish in 17 starts this season was T11 at the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches.
Austin Eckroat, tied in second place at 8-under, fired two eagles at the par-5 2nd and the par-4 5th and closed with a bogey-free 63. This was his first round with multiple eagles on Tour.
Eckroat has won twice on Tour, at the 2024 Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches and the 2024 World Wide Technology Championship . His best finish in nineteen starts this season was T13 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Max Homa started on the back nine and fired four consecutive birdies from the 11th as well as five more and a bogey at the 9th to record a 63, his lowest opening-round score on Tour, for a share of second place.
Homa seeks his first top-10 result this year. His best finish in 16 starts this season was T12 at the Masters Tournament.
David Lipsky shot four birdies in a row from the 10th and closed with a bogey at the 18th for a 64 and a share of fourth place at 7-under alongside Sam Stevens who stayed bogey-free, as well as Justin Lower and Michael Kim who both made one bogey.
33 eagles were recorded in the first round, the most eagles in a round at TPC Deere Run since 2000 (previous: 26/2024/R1).
Related: Lee Westwood among 3 LIV Golfers to qualify for the Open Championship
| Pos. | Player | To Par | R1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doug Ghim | -9 | 62 |
| T2 | Austin Eckroat | -8 | 63 |
| T2 | Max Homa | -8 | 63 |
| T4 | David Lipsky | -7 | 64 |
| T4 | Sam Stevens | -7 | 64 |
| T4 | Justin Lower | -7 | 64 |
| T4 | Michael Kim | -7 | 64 |
| T8 | Emiliano Grillo | -6 | 65 |
| T8 | Si Woo Kim | -6 | 65 |
| T8 | Matt Kuchar | -6 | 65 |
| T8 | Rickie Fowler | -6 | 65 |
| T8 | Kevin Yu | -6 | 65 |
| T8 | Cameron Champ | -6 | 65 |
| T8 | Rikuya Hoshino | -6 | 65 |
| T8 | Brian Campbell | -6 | 65 |
| T8 | Kris Ventura | -6 | 65 |
| T17 | Denny McCarthy | -5 | 66 |
| T17 | Joel Dahmen | -5 | 66 |
| T17 | Keith Mitchell | -5 | 66 |
| T17 | Chris Gotterup | -5 | 66 |
| T17 | Thriston Lawrence | -5 | 66 |
| T17 | Rico Hoey | -5 | 66 |
| T17 | Camilo Villegas | -5 | 66 |
| T24 | Beau Hossler | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Seamus Power | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Chris Kirk | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Garrick Higgo | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Kevin Roy | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Chesson Hadley | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Ricky Castillo | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Jesper Svensson | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | James Hahn | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Dylan Wu | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Carson Young | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Brandt Snedeker | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Aldrich Potgieter | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Eric Cole | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Chandler Phillips | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Lanto Griffin | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Greyson Sigg | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Nate Lashley | -4 | 67 |
| T24 | Taylor Montgomery | -4 | 67 |
| T43 | Jacob Bridgeman | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Ryo Hisatsune | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Sungjae Im | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Jake Knapp | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Nick Dunlap | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Danny Willett | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Victor Perez | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Ryan Gerard | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Cristobal Del Solar | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | David Ford | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Steven Fisk | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Ben James(a) | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Henrik Norlander | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Lee Hodges | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Davis Thompson | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Kurt Kitayama | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Trevor Cone | -3 | 68 |
| T43 | Paul Waring | -3 | 68 |
| T61 | Vince Whaley | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Adam Svensson | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Peter Malnati | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Luke List | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Patrick Rodgers | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Joseph Bramlett | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Ben Kohles | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Martin Laird | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Jackson Suber | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Paul Peterson | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Preston Summerhays | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Petr Hruby | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Takumi Kanaya | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Matthew Riedel | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Bud Cauley | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Dylan Frittelli | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Zac Blair | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Ben Martin | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Zach Johnson | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Will Gordon | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Chan Kim | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | John Pak | -2 | 69 |
| T61 | Jeremy Paul | -2 | 69 |
| T84 | Chad Ramey | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Adam Schenk | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Scott Piercy | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Luke Clanton | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | William Mouw | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Mark Hubbard | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Sam Ryder | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Nick Hardy | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Michael Thorbjornsen | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Patton Kizzire | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Taylor Moore | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Patrick Fishburn | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Mac Meissner | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Sami Valimaki | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Thomas Rosenmueller | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Taylor Dickson | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Gordon Sargent | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Jackson Koivun(a) | -1 | 70 |
| T84 | Josh Radcliff | -1 | 70 |
| T103 | Kevin Kisner | Par | 71 |
| T103 | Brice Garnett | Par | 71 |
| T103 | Matt McCarty | Par | 71 |
| T103 | Zack Fischer | Par | 71 |
| T103 | Brendan Valdes | Par | 71 |
| T103 | Andrew Putnam | Par | 71 |
| T103 | Bronson Burgoon | Par | 71 |
| T103 | Ben Griffin | Par | 71 |
| T103 | Noah Goodwin | Par | 71 |
| T103 | Will Chandler | Par | 71 |
| T113 | Harry Higgs | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Rafael Campos | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Kevin Velo | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Brandon Matthews | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Kaito Onishi | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | David Skinns | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Nico Echavarria | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Tom Kim | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Lucas Glover | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Christiaan Bezuidenhout | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Quade Cummins | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Trace Crowe | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Philip Knowles | +1 | 72 |
| T113 | Hayden Springer | +1 | 72 |
| T127 | Ryan Palmer | +2 | 73 |
| T127 | Alejandro Tosti | +2 | 73 |
| T127 | Anders Albertson | +2 | 73 |
| T127 | Max McGreevy | +2 | 73 |
| T127 | Kyle Stanley | +2 | 73 |
| T127 | Austin Cook | +2 | 73 |
| T127 | Adam Hadwin | +2 | 73 |
| T127 | Aaron Wise | +2 | 73 |
| T127 | Alex Smalley | +2 | 73 |
| T127 | Jay Giannetto | +2 | 73 |
| T137 | Hayden Buckley | +3 | 74 |
| T137 | J.T. Poston | +3 | 74 |
| T137 | Isaiah Salinda | +3 | 74 |
| T137 | Frankie Capan III | +3 | 74 |
| T137 | Jason Day | +3 | 74 |
| T137 | Joe Highsmith | +3 | 74 |
| T137 | Matt NeSmith | +3 | 74 |
| T137 | Thorbjørn Olesen | +3 | 74 |
| T145 | Trey Mullinax | +4 | 75 |
| T145 | Mason Andersen | +4 | 75 |
| T145 | Nicholas Lindheim | +4 | 75 |
| T145 | Michael La Sasso(a) | +4 | 75 |
| T145 | Tim Widing | +4 | 75 |
| T150 | Ben Silverman | +5 | 76 |
| T150 | Braden Thornberry | +5 | 76 |
| T150 | Harrison Endycott | +5 | 76 |
| T150 | Carson Herron | +5 | 76 |
| 154 | Karl Vilips | +6 | 77 |
| 155 | Pierceson Coody | +8 | 79 |
| W/D | Stephan Jaeger | - | 74 |
