Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre and American Beau Hossler each fired a seven-under-par 64 to share the lead after Thursday’s opening round of the PGA Tour’s inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic.
MacIntyre, twice a winner on the DP World Tour, and Hossler, like the Scotsman chasing his first US Tour triumph, made solid debuts at Dunes Golf and Beach Club in the South Carolina vacation haven.
China’s Dou Zecheng, Argentina’s Alejandro Tosti and Americans Davis Thompson and Alistair Docherty shared third on 65.
South Africa’s Erik van Rooyen began with a 67 that included five birdies and a bogey.
MacIntyre, ranked 84th in the world, began on the back nine and closed it with five birdies in seven holes, his longest birdie putt from 17 feet at the par-three 12th.
Ten-foot birdie putts at the par-five 4th and par-four 6th lifted him into a share of the lead at seven under.
A tee shot well right into trees led to a bogey at 8 but at the par-three 9th he made a 35-foot birdie putt to match Hossler for the lead.
“Got off to a good start, built up a bit of momentum and then just hung on to it really,” MacIntyre said. “It got really tough on the back nine so I was just trying to manage the misses well.
“I thought I putted really well … Overall a great day.”
Hossler, ranked 81st, had his best PGA Tour finish as a 2018 Houston Open runner-up, losing a playoff to England’s Ian Poulter.
Hossler birdied three of the first five holes, his longest birdie putt from just inside 13 feet at the par-three 5th. He birdied 11 and 12 then blasted 75 feet out a bunker for eagle at the par-five 13th.
He found the water on his approach and made bogey at 14 but answered with a birdie at the par-five 15th, his approach landing less than an inch from the hole.
“It was solid. It was a bit of a grind. I don’t feel like I hit that many greens, but I feel like I hit the ball well,” Hossler said.
“Struggled judging the wind. It seemed like it swirled kind of with the storms, and my chipping and putting was excellent. All in all, really happy with it.”
The tournament serves as a secondary event while top PGA Tour players compete at the signature-level Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte, North Carolina.
© Agence France-Presse
Photo: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images
