Justin Lower signed for a bogey-free, 6-under 65 to take a share of the lead at the suspended Butterfield Bermuda Championship
“I’m pretty proud of [my round]. The wind, I mean, it’s difficult, it makes it difficult, kind of slows everyone down. It’s just sometimes it kind of lays down maybe 5 to 10 miles an hour and the next thing you know a minute later it’s 25 to 30 and you don’t really know when it’s coming.
“The little rain showers we had pop up there made it seem even chillier than what it was. I can’t believe I’m actually saying that in Bermuda. It wasn’t exactly warm out there until the last nine holes I thought.
“But no, I’m proud of the round. Made some good par saves to kind of keep the round going and luckily finished strong.”
Lower recorded his best result in 94 starts on the PGA Tour with a joint runner-up finish at last week’s World Wide Technology Championship. He started the week at No. 74 in the FedExCup Fall standings and seeks to earn access into the first two Signature Events (outside of The Sentry) next season via the Aon Next 10.
Rookie Hayden Springer began this week on the bubble at No. 125 in the FedExCup Fall standings and birdied three of the last four holes to take a share of the lead. He has notched four top-10s this season with T3 at the Puerto Rico Open his best result.
“It’s definitely not an easy stretch,” he said of the last four holes. “Birdie on 15 was kind of a bonus
making a long putt there. Then kind of have to just get through 16, and then 17’s gettable being downwind and was able to make birdie, good up-and-down there. And 18’s another bonus birdie, just happened to hit a good shot, used the slope and just bring it back maybe five or six feet.
“I feel like I’ve had to learn a lot this year and kind of go with some good and some bad and kind of take it one week at a time and try and figure it out. I’m just trying to do the same thing, it’s just take this week and we’ll see what happens. But yeah, try not to think too much about it and just go play golf.”
Patrick Rodgers stayed bogey-free to take a share of third place at 5-under alongside Joseph Bramlett who made one bogey and one double bogey at the par-3 16th as well as Kevin Dougherty who has one hole left to play and completes the all-American top-5.
Round one was suspended due to darkness at 5:19 p.m. local time with 21 players to finish. The first round will resume at 7 a.m. Friday. Round two will start as scheduled at 7 a.m.
