Scottie Scheffler is tied for the lead after the opening round of the Hero World Challenge, finishing six under alongside JJ Spaun, Sepp Straka, Wyndham Clark and Akshay Bhatia at Albany Golf Club in New Providence, Bahamas.
Making his first start in two months, Scheffler posted a 66. He birdied four of the six scoring holes — the four par 5s and two reachable par 4s — before a chip that ran past the 18th green led to a closing bogey. “I did some good stuff,” he said afterward, adding that he felt he could have shot lower and that a little rust is normal coming back into competition.
Bhatia and Straka carded bogey-free rounds. Clark, Scheffler and Spaun each climbed to seven under at one point before dropping a shot late: Clark bogeyed the par-5 15th after a poor tee shot, and Spaun bogeyed the 18th from a fairway bunker. Notable moments included Clark and Bhatia holing bunker shots for eagle on the reachable par-4 seventh.
Scoring was strong across the field: all but four players broke par. Newcomer Chris Gotterup opened with a 74 and Robert MacIntyre a 73. Jordan Spieth, playing on a sponsor exemption in his first start since the FedEx St. Jude Championship, shot 72. Spieth ran three straight birdies on the front nine but managed no birdies over the final 11 holes as he struggled at times with his chipping and putting.
Scheffler had gone 41 consecutive holes without a bogey dating back to last year before his miss on the 18th green. Play continues at Albany, with coverage available on Sky Sports Golf.