Max Greyserman Shares Biltmore Championship Lead With Eric Cole

• Max Greyserman and Eric Cole share the first-round lead at Biltmore Championship Asheville.
• Greyserman began the FedEx Cup Fall at No. 103, three places outside the top-100.
• Neal Shipley trails the leaders by one shot after opening with a rookie-season best of 65.

Max Greyserman returned from a five-week break to share the first-round lead with Eric Cole at the inaugural Biltmore Championship Asheville.

Greyserman and Cole each shot 7-under 64 at The Cliff at Walnut Grove, taking a one-stroke advantage over Neal Shipley on a rain-softened course in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains.

The tournament is the PGA Tour’s first event in the region since Ben Hogan won there in 1942. It also opens the eight-event FedEx Cup Fall, which will determine the top-100 players retaining full status for 2027.

Greyserman makes fast start after break

Greyserman began the Fall at No. 103 in the standings following one top-10 finish in 23 starts this season. His tie for ninth at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson left him 11 shots behind the winner, while his world ranking has fallen from No. 32 at the start of the year to No. 90.

The 31-year-old had not competed since the Wyndham Championship. He spent two weeks with his eight-month-old son, practised for a week in New Jersey and then took a two-week holiday in Italy.

“Maybe that’s key,” Greyserman said. “Don’t practice and just have a good time and just show up here.”

After getting up and down for par on his sixth hole by hitting a wedge to two feet, Greyserman produced four consecutive birdies. His 64 matched his best opening round of the season and gave him a third career first-round lead or co-lead.

He has yet to convert either of his previous two opportunities. Greyserman owns five runner-up finishes in 78 PGA Tour starts, including second place at the 2025 Baycurrent Classic. He also shared the halfway lead at the 2024 World Wide Technology Championship.

Preferred lies will remain in effect for all four rounds after heavy rainfall and high temperatures created difficult agronomic conditions during tournament preparations.

“I guess it’s maybe more freeing when you play a course for the first time because you don’t have any bad memories to pull up,” Greyserman said. “You just have no memories, so it’s nice and fresh.”

Cole continues pursuit of first title

Cole moved ahead with a birdie at the par-5 8th, his penultimate hole, but found trouble from the final tee. After punching back into play, he missed a 20-foot par putt and dropped into a tie with Greyserman.

In his 131st start, the 38-year-old remains without a PGA Tour victory. He has three runner-up finishes, most recently a playoff defeat by Russell Henley at the 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge.

This was Cole’s fifth first-round lead or co-lead and his third this season. He also opened with a 63 to lead the Travelers Championship in June.

Cole finished 49th in the FedExCup, securing entry to next season’s signature events. A victory this autumn would also guarantee a place in the Championship Series when the PGA Tour’s two-tier structure begins in 2028.

“I just like to play a lot of golf. I enjoy competing,” Cole said. “Any chance I have to play and compete out here is something that means a lot to me.”

Shipley’s 65 was his lowest opening score as a rookie. Presidents Cup debutant Jacob Bridgeman shot 66, while Canada’s Nick Taylor led the five International team members in the field with a 67 before next week’s Presidents Cup matches at Medinah.

Related: Aaron Rai & Joakim Lagergren Share BMW PGA Championship Lead

Rai opened with a 6-under 66 alongside Lagergren at Wentworth, where a packed leaderboard left six players within one shot and Rory McIlroy three behind.

For the latest news in the golfing world, follow us on X.