{"id":1253861,"date":"2024-09-19T20:41:53","date_gmt":"2024-09-19T20:41:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/golftoday.co.uk\/?p=1253861"},"modified":"2024-09-19T20:44:09","modified_gmt":"2024-09-19T20:44:09","slug":"bmw-pga-championship-2024-r1-matthew-baldwin-leading-at-wentworth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/golftoday.co.uk\/bmw-pga-championship-2024-r1-matthew-baldwin-leading-at-wentworth\/","title":{"rendered":"Matthew Baldwin leading at Wentworth"},"content":{"rendered":"

Matthew Baldwin signed for a flawless 7-under 65 to take a one-shot lead at the BMW PGA Championship, one of only two players to stay bogey-free at Wentworth Club.<\/p>\n

The Englishman holds the first round lead for the first time since the 2018 Soudal Open.<\/p>\n

“It was lovely. I feel like my game has been pretty strong for a while and to actually put it into a performance is nice, a nice positive,” said Baldwin.<\/p>\n

“I stayed patient. I got off to a good start which obviously then you gain momentum. I holed a few nice putts and I hit it close when I needed to.<\/p>\n

“It’s definitely been coming. My game’s been strong for a while, results haven’t always shown that and I’m quite good at getting in the way of myself. I think today I’ve tried to be as calm and positive as I could.<\/p>\n

“It’s great, this is the tournament as players we all look forward to. It’s a great week on and off the golf course. It’s a pleasure to be here.<\/p>\n

“I’ve proved I can shoot a good number and hopefully let’s do it again.”<\/p>\n

Dane Niklas N\u00f8rgaard and Belgian Thomas Detry are tied in second place at 6-under one shot ahead of a group of eleven players, among them Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy.<\/p>\n