World number 1 Scottie Scheffler carded a flawless 10-under 61 on Thursday, featuring an eagle at the par-5 9th and four consecutive birdies from the 3rd to take a two-shot lead at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson.
“Feel good. I played nice today. Had the good front nine; was able to put together a solid back nine as well.
“Overall very pleased with the results of today.”
Scheffler shot 7-under 29 on the front nine to match the low front-nine score at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson since it moved to TPC Craig Ranch in 2021. He matched the second-lowest 9-hole score by any player on Tour in 2025 (lowest: 28/Jesper Svensson/Texas Children’s Houston Open).
The 28-year-old Texan seeks his 14th win in his 139th start on Tour. He last won at the 2024 Tour Championship.
Scheffler started the week No. 7 in the FedExCup standings. He has finished in the top 25 in each of his eight starts on Tour in 2025 (best finish: T2/Texas Children’s Houston Open).
The Philippines’ Rico Hoey fired an eagle at the par-3 18th and six birdies on his back nine including five in a row from the 2nd to close with a bogey-free 8-under 63 for a share of second place.
He matched his low 18-hole score on Tour previously shot at the 2025 American Express (R2) and the 2024 American Express (R1).
He hit all 14 fairways, the second time he has hit 100% of fairways in a round on Tour (2024 World Wide Technology Championship/R1).
The 29-year-old seeks his first win in his 44th start on Tour. His best finish was P2 at the 2024 ISCO Championship. Hoey is aiming to become the first player from the Philippines to win on Tour.
He has had three top-25 finishes in thirteen starts this season, his best finish was T11 at the Texas Children’s Houston Open.
Jhonattan Vegas shares second place after a bogey-free round featuring an eagle at the par-4 14th, his low round of the 2025 season.
The 40-year-old Venezuelan seeks his fifth win in his 318th start on Tour (previous wins: 2011 American Express; 2016 RBC Canadian Open; 2017 RBC Canadian Open; 2024 3M Open).
He has recorded one top-10 finish in ten starts this season, a 4th at The Sentry. Vegas entered the week with four consecutive missed cuts.
Germany’s Stephan Jaeger shot a bogey-free 64 for a share of fourth place at 7-under alongside six American players. His lone PGA Tour win in 163 starts came at last year’s Texas Children’s Houston Open.
Preferred lies were in effect for the first round after TPC Craig Ranch received 2.22 inches of rain on Wednesday.
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