Zurich Classic 2022 leaderboard: Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele combine with 59 in Round 1 to set a record
A fun first day of Zurich Classic 2022 has resulted in an interesting ranking. With 10 of the top 20 golfers in the world in the field, it wasn’t until the end of Round 1 until one of the top-ranked doubles – Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele – started to take the top spot at TPC Louisiana. . And then they took over the event with a tournament record score of 59 on Thursday.
The once hit Ryder Cup duo took the lead after Round 1 and are now more serious contenders than ever for the title having bypassed them last year but it seemed like a perfect fit. for the two of them to win. Thursday is one of two four-ball games, so dropping scores to a low of 60 (and below) with Friday’s rotation will certainly boost those scores before the weekend.
Let’s take a look at how Cantlay and Schauffele put together their record, who’s left to compete and what else happened continues Thursday in one of the most exciting tournaments the PGA Tours run throughout the year.
Leaders
Xander Schauffele / Patrick Cantlay (-13): The lovers are who we think they are. Cantlay and Schauffele came on as fellow hobbyists with Collin Morikawa and Viktor Hovland, then dropped out and beat 13 under 59 on the field. After finishing at 29, their round stalled a bit for the second nine rounds before they beat the last three in a row for the magic number.
While it’s not entirely unusual for the best team (especially one with both players ranked in the top 12 in the world) to cross the 60 mark, it’s still very special when it happens. and especially since it never took place at this event.
Schauffele of the 59 who set the new Zurich Classic scoring record said: “It’s valuable to me. “I haven’t done that before. I don’t think Pat has either. I’ll put it in my notebook.”
The bigger story here is that Cantlay and Schauffele got off to a good start on a field they were once co-favorites. We’ll take a closer look at those numbers below, but it will take quite a bit of effort for a team from deeper in this pack to knock out two of the best players in the world over the next 54 holes, especially with the two innings of alternate footage coming up. The format of that penalty shootout resembles the one Cantlay and Schauffele won 2-0-0 in last year’s Ryder Cup.
“It’s only the first quarter,” Cantlay said. “So buffer, we’ve only got one more shot, but we’re going to switch to a format on Friday that we really like. I think Xander and I really like the alternative shot. It’s one one of our strong points for the week, and we’re really looking forward to it.”
Other candidates
2. Matthew NeSmith / Taylor Moore (-12)
T3. Aaron Rai / David Lipsky, Tommy Gainey / Robert Garrigus, Doc Redman / Sam Ryder (-11)
T6. Sam Burns / Billy Horschel, Bubba Watson / Harold Varner III, Cameron Tringale / Wyndhan Clark (-10)
The trio at T6 is one to watch. All three of those groups played in the afternoon and looked great. That could be the place of fire in the next few days. Burns and Horschel are particularly interesting as they completed two shots in the playoffs here last year and have recently played extremely well individually (both in the top 20 this week in the field with total number of strokes reached in the last 20 rounds).
Rick Gehman and Sia Nejad Break Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay’s Ball 59 at Zurich Classic 2022. Follow and listen to The First Cut on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Two lessons
1. Golf is ageless: The year Collin Morikawa was born, Jay Haas turned 44. They shot by the same score Thursday at TPC Louisiana. Elder Haas (starting his 799th PGA Tour!) Teams up with his son, Bill, to shoot the bottom 7. The 68-year-old nine-time PGA Tour champion made four birdies on his own, and the top 25 Haas duo advanced to Round 2. Morikawa and teammate Viktor Hovland (their combined ages are just 20 years old. . Haas) fired 30 shots but ended up with a disappointing 35 behind nine shots of 65. They had plenty of life left in Round 2 and will thrive on Friday’s replacement.
2. Incredible timing: From the profile “you definitely can’t make these”, Robert Garrigus Controversial of the Week when it was revealed that he might come and play in the LIV Golf Invitational – a rival tournament to the PGA Tour – was unbelievable. Garrigus hasn’t had a top 10 since 2018, but he and partner Tommy Gainey made 11 birdies between them and now find themselves being hunted at a tournament where Garrigus – if he’s at the top – will certainly be asked many times about his future. PGA Tour. This is not a bad thing for the Tour as Garrigus is certainly not a household name, but it would be an incredible thing if he somehow kept going and won on his way to the tournament. backed by Saudi Arabia.
Quote of the day
Collin Morikawa and Viktor Hovland were asked about Jay Haas’s 799th start on the PGA Tour, and they joked about how soon one of their peers could get through it.
Hovland: “We have a long way to go.”
Morikawa: “No, I can’t imagine that.”
Hovland: “It’s great. He must have watched some things. He must have had some pretty good stories. It was a lot of events.”
Morikawa: “However, Sungjae Im can be close to that.”
Hovland: “He’s on the right track”
Statistics of the day
It’s hard to beat this one.
New odds and options
Here are the new odds after 18 holes, provided by Caesars Sportsbook.
- Patrick Cantlay / Xander Schauffele: 2-1
- Billy Horschel / Sam Burns: 7-1
- Scottie Scheffler / Ryan Palmer: 14-1
- Harold Varner III / Bubba Watson: 14-1
- Viktor Hovland / Collin Morikawa: 16-1
This seems to be the case, and I love the teams even more in this table. While Cantlay and Schauffele look set to be in the game until late Sunday, it’s fairly easy to slip alternately and post some big numbers. I love the Scheffler/Palmer pairing 14-1 as well as Hovland/Morikawa at 16-1 because they could easily shoot 57 or 58 on Saturday in the other four-ball format of the week.
