Wyndham Championship: Rafa Cabrera Bello, Kevin Na Share First Round Lead
By Adam McGee
As play got underway at the Wyndham Championship, Rafa Cabrera Bello and Kevin Na got out in front to set the early pace.
Only one week away from the start of the FedEx Cup playoff series, and with the countdown to the Ryder Cup ramping up on both sides of the Atlantic, there’s a lot to play for at this week’s Wyndham Championship.
A regular season finale of sorts for the PGA Tour this year, the Wyndham Championship returns to Sedgefield Country Club for the ninth straight year.
Scoring is generally good at the par-70, Donald Ross designed course, and if the early indications from the opening round are anything to go by, this year won’t be any different.
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Coming back from Rio after finishing in a tie for fifth in the return of men’s golf to the Olympic Games, Rafa Cabrera Bello continued his good form around the globe this season with a scorching opening round.
Cabrera Bello is already very close to automatically booking his place on the European Ryder Cup team, but with his play of late he’d seem like a certainty for a captain’s pick even if he was to miss out.
On Thursday in North Carolina, Cabrera Bello started his round on the 10th hole and went bogey-free on the day. The 32-year-old compiled five birdies and an eagle on the par-5 fifth hole en route to a round of 63.
Although Cabrera Bello held the sole lead in the early running, he soon had company from one of the PGA Tour’s most consistent players.
Kevin Na has been racking up top-10 finishes for fun over the past two seasons, but is yet to end a win drought that dates all the way back to 2011. He’ll have every chance this weekend at Sedgefield if his play from Thursday persists.
Na was another who managed to go around without a single blemish on his scorecard on Thursday, and with seven birdies to his name, he’ll have to be happy with his opening day’s work.
Just behind the two men at the top of the pile, there was no shortage of recognizable names playing good golf.
Former world no.1 Luke Donald showed signs of form with a five-under, 65. That round was good enough to place Donald in a tie for third, and for the most part he had the shot of the day to thank for it.
Donald recorded a hole-in-one at the par-3 16th hole, and as a result earned vacations for life from tournament sponsor Wyndham.
Donald is joined on five-under by Danny Lee and Brandt Snedeker, while other notable names such as Patrick Reed, Hideki Matsuyama, Jim Furyk and Bill Haas all just sit one shot further back at four-under.
Wyndham Championship – Day 1 Scores and Leaderboard
T1 Rafa Cabrera Bello – 63 (-7)
T1 Kevin Na – 63 (-7)
T3 Luke Donald – 65 (-5)
T3 Danny Lee – 65 (-5)
T3 Derek Fathauer – 65 (-5)
T3 Brandt Snedeker – 65 (-5)
T3 Peter Malnati – 65 (-5)
Next: Czech Masters: Defending Champion Thomas Pieters Well-Positioned After Round 1
Play will resume for round two at 7am local time on Friday morning.