Defending champion Sam Burns is one of four players to score a seven-under-par 64, after the first round of play at the Valspar Championship on Thursday.

The world number eight had a busy round on the opening day, with nine birdies and two bogeys. He recovered well after bogey the par-four 16th and reeled off birdies on the final two holes to close out his opening 18 holes.

Following a chaotic weekend at The Players Championship, the Florida weather had a positive effect on the Copperhead course, with Burns reaping the benefits from facilitative greens.

"The greens are really receptive with the rain we’ve gotten last week," he told reporters following his round.

"Yeah, I think the golf course will continue to firm up after we get some sun and wind and I think it’s going to play really well the next few days."

Burns, David Lipsky, Adam Hadwin and Jhonattan Vegas share the lead at Copperhead after the first day of play.

Scott Stallings, Richy Werenski, Davis Riley and Danny Lee are one back at six under, while Justin Thomas, Kramer Hickok and Doc Redman are a further two strokes back.

After missing the cut at TPC Sawgrass, Jason Day opened with a one-under-70, only two weeks after the passing of mother.

Notable names in group at four under include Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Matt Kuchar and Louis Oosthuizen.

Out of the co-leaders, though, Lipsky was the only one to go bogey-free, opening with a birdie on the par-five first to set the tone on a confident front nine. He closed out the round with four consecutive pars.

The 33-year-old has never won on the PGA Tour and has not won an event since his time on the European Tour in 2018.

Luke List has had a long wait for his first PGA Tour win and that was extended after a two-hour wait before triumphing in a playoff over Will Zalatoris at the Farmers Insurance Open on Saturday.

The 37-year-old American, enjoyed an excellent final round six-under-66, highlighted by four consecutive birdies from the third to the sixth holes, to storm up the leaderboard at Torrey Pines.

But List, in his 206th career start, waited almost two hours after entering the clubhouse as the overnight leaders completed their rounds before facing Zalatoris, who also finished 15-under overall, in an 18th hole playoff.

In fading light, the pair both landed their tee shots within inches of each other in a bunker, with List's third shot placed close to the hole, enabling him to tap in to card a birdie.

Zalatoris pushed his longer birdie putt, which was near-identical to his 18th hole putt for victory that he missed, wide left again to settle the playoff in List's favour.

California-born 25-year-old Zalatoris may have clinched victory on the 18th as List patiently waited and practiced elsewhere, but was agonizingly short and slightly wide after a late fade on his putt.

He carded a final round one-under-71, grouped alongside Jason Day and Aaron Rai, with world number one Jon Rahm also making a late charge.

Day shot into a share of the lead after landing an eagle on the 14th hole but had to settle for joint third alongside Rahm and Cameron Tringale at 14-under-par overall.

The Australian, who had not won a PGA Tour title in 1,364 days, finished with back-to-back bogeys to slip from contention.

Rahm rolled in a clutch 26-foot putt to birdie the 17th to be one shot off the pace but only managed par on the last hole.

Joaquin Niemann, Justin Rose, Pat Perez, Sungjae Im and Rai were next, finishing 13-under overall.

Australia's Jason Day and Marc Leishman carded a 16-under 56 to take a one-shot lead after the opening round of the QBE Shootout.

The three-day event in Florida started with the scramble format on Friday, with players picking the team's best shot and continuing from there.

Day and Leishman finished with 12 birdies and two eagles in a blemish-free round to take a narrow lead into Saturday's greensomes.

Defending champions Harris English and Matt Kuchar, who are seeking to win the tournament for a fourth time, join Corey Conners and Graeme McDowell one stroke further back.

All 12 teams shot 62 or lower, with Bubba Watson and LPGA Tour player Lexi Thompson on 13 under in joint-fourth, alongside Kevin Na and Jason Kokrak.

Jason Kokrak rallied with four consecutive birdies as a stellar back nine helped the American claim the Houston Open.

Kokrak carded a five-under-par 65 for an impressive two-shot victory and his third PGA Tour trophy at Memorial Park on Sunday.

The 36-year-old was two strokes behind with six holes to play before birdieing the 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th to trump countrymen Kevin Tway (68) and overnight leader Scottie Scheffler (69) to glory.

"Very blessed to be standing here," Kokrak said afterwards in Houston, where he found himself 10 shots adrift after two rounds.

Kokrak, who went 232 starts before his first PGA Tour victory, has now won three titles in his last 27 starts, dating back to October's CJ Cup.

"This win is very special. I was really struggling with my game at the beginning of this week," Kokrak added.

"But I was on the phone with my swing coach and worked on a few things and that worked really well. So, I have to thank him and my caddie, it was really tough at times out there."

Tway and Scheffler finished tied for second, while Kramer Hickok shot a final-round 69 to be outright fourth at seven under as Joel Dahmen (65) and Martin Trainer (70) ended the tournament a shot further back.

At the other end of the spectrum, former world number ones Adam Scott (73) and Jason Day (70) closed out the event at five over, two strokes better off than 2018 Masters champion Patrick Reed (77).

Marc Leishman is in a four-way tie for the Houston Open lead following an interrupted start at the PGA Tour event.

Play was suspended due to darkness on Thursday, with a number of players yet to complete their opening rounds in Houston.

Leishman – making his first Houston Open start since 2013 – got through his 18 holes and the Australian star carded a five-under-par 65 at Memorial Park Municipal Golf Course.

Russell Henley – winner of the tournament in 2017, Talor Gooch and Luke List are also five under, though the latter was the only member of the quartet still to complete his round, having made it through 15 holes.

"Probably for about six months I feel like I've been playing OK, just not getting anything out of it," Leishman said. "It can be a crazy game, it can get you down and you can play really well and not have a good score and play mediocre golf and have a really good score.

"You have to try and not let that get to you. I think a fresh season, a new start was pretty good for me. Got me to knuckle down and just really focus and been playing some good golf."

Jason Dufner is one stroke off the pace heading into Friday, while Keith Mitchell, Ben Silverman, Jhonattan Vegas (through 13), Wyndham Clark (through 13), Adam Long (through 11) and Martin Trainer (through 11) are a shot further back.

Former world number one Jason Day completed 11 holes to be even par before play was cut short, alongside four-time major champion Brooks Koepka (through nine).

Cam Davis earned his first PGA Tour win, defeating Troy Merritt on the fifth play-off hole to clinch the Rocket Mortgage Classic trophy.

After going eagle-birdie on the final two holes of regulation to make the three-way playoff, 26-year-old Australian Davis triumphed over Merritt and Joaquin Niemann to reign supreme on Sunday.

It was the second consecutive week a marathon play-off was needed to determine a winner, after Harris English prevailed on the eighth extra hole to claim the Travelers Championship.

After the trio finished 72 holes at 18 under par, Chilean golfer Niemann went out on the first play-off hole, the par-four 18th, with a bogey his first of the week as he settled for his third runners-up performance this season.

Davis and Merritt duelled from there, matching scores on the 15th, 16th and 14th before returning to the par-three 15th hole again. 

There, Davis finally closed Merritt out, making par while the American bogeyed the hole. 

Davis became the seventh first-time winner on Tour this season. 

"It's been pretty hectic ever since the 17th hole for me, so I just tried to put as much out of my mind as I could and hit every shot for what it was worth," Davis told CBS after the round.

"As simple as that's said, it's so hard to do when the pressure's on like that, but I just kept on putting good swings on it. I didn't make any putts, but I kept on putting it in play, so it worked out all right."

Alex Noren (64) and Hank Lebioda (68) finished 17 under, while Bubba Watson (64) and Brandon Hagy (68) finished two back of the leaders at 16 under. 

Former world number one Jason Day had his best round of the week with a 66 but finished five strokes adrift of the play-off group, along with Keegan Bradley (68) and others. 

Among other notables, Patrick Reed (67) and Rickie Fowler (71) finished 10 under, while Phil Mickelson's third consecutive 72 left him at three under for the tournament. 

Troy Merritt joined Joaquin Niemann atop the leaderboard heading into the final round at the Rocket Mortgage Classic thanks in part to a remarkable hole-in-one. 

In search of his third PGA Tour title and first in nearly three years, Merritt was one stroke better than Niemann (68) in the third round and turned in the highlight of the day in Detroit. 

The American's tee shot on the 218-yard 11th bounced on the green and arced straight into the cup, setting off a celebration in the gallery. 

It was Merritt's first ace in PGA Tour play and momentarily gave him a three-shot lead, but he spent more time after the round stewing over his bogey on the following hole. 

"The big thing is, when you get out in front, don't go back to the guys behind you," he said. "Make them come and get you." 

Niemann enjoyed a steadier day, carding birdies on the first and last holes to book-end his third consecutive bogey-free round and sit at 14 under par for the tournament. 

The Chilean will try to run down his first win since the 2019 Greenbrier Classic on Sunday, but he and Merritt will have plenty of competition. 

Hank Leiboda (66) and Cam Davis (67) begin the final round one stroke back, with Brandon Hagy (68) two back at 12 under and six more golfers at 11 under. 

Among the notables down the leaderboard, Rickie Fowler and Keegan Bradley are at nine under after carding 68s, with Bubba Watson (67) one stroke behind them. 

Former world number one Jason Day (69) is at seven under, Patrick Reed (70) at five under and Phil Mickelson at three under after a second consecutive round of 72. 

Joaquin Niemann and Tom Lewis are tied for the one-shot lead at the halfway stage of the Rocket Mortgage Classic, where defending champion Bryson DeChambeau missed the cut.

Niemann and Lewis both carded three-under-par 69s in the second round of the PGA Tour tournament in Detroit on Friday.

Eyeing his second PGA Tour title and first since the 2019 Greenbrier Classic, Chilean golfer Niemann was bogey-free as he recorded three birdies to reach 10 under through 36 holes.

Englishman Lewis – a two-time European Tour champion but without success on the PGA circuit – was also flawless following three birdies without a dropped shot on day two.

Lewis is making his 45th career PGA Tour start. In his first 43 starts, he played the opening 36 holes in 134 or better once (134/2020 Shriners Hospital for Children Open). The 30-year-old has now done it in each of his last two starts – 134 at Travelers Championship and this week's Rocket Mortgage Classic.

Troy Merritt (68), Chris Kirk (68) and Max Homa (65) are a shot off the pace heading into the weekend, while overnight leader Davis Thompson (73) is among a group of players tied for sixth at eight under.

Former world number one Jason Day could only manage a second-round 73 as he fell to four under, six shots behind the leading pair – a stroke better off than Patrick Reed (72) and six-time major champion Phil Mickelson (72).

US PGA Championship winner Mickelson played the final two holes in one-under to finish three under, just a shot above the cut line.

"I am tired of trying to fight to make cuts. I want to get in contention, because that's what's so much fun, like it was at the PGA, just being in contention and having a chance," Mickelson said.

DeChambeau (71) was not so fortunate as the big-hitting American's title defence came to an end after just two rounds at one under.

Meanwhile, Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama was forced to withdraw before his second round after testing positive for coronavirus.

Davis Thompson tied the 18-hole scoring record at the Rocket Mortgage Classic after earning the opening-round lead.

Thompson – in his third PGA Tour tournament as a professional – carded a nine-under-par 63 to claim a two-stroke lead in Detroit, where play was suspended due to darkness on Thursday.

The 22-year-old surprisingly leads at Detroit Golf Club following a flawless first round which featured nine birdies to match the 18-hole scoring record at the event, joining Nate Lashley and J.T. Poston (both in 2019).

"Sounds good on Sunday," Thompson said afterwards, having been a collective six-over par in his six previous starts on tour (four as an amateur). "It's only Thursday. I know I've got a long way to go."

"I’ve played in a few pro events now, so you've just got to keep your emotions in check," Thompson said. "Anything can happen. I know I'm playing well, so I'm just going to have some confidence going into [Friday] and hopefully I can play another good round."

Brandon Hagy, Tom Lewis and Joaquin Niemann are two shots off the pace heading into Friday's second round, while Seamus Power and J.J. Spain are a stroke further back.

Former world number one Jason Day ended the opening day five under following his 67 as six-time major champion and US PGA Championship winner Phil Mickelson posted a 69 to be level with the likes of Patrick Reed.

Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama opened his tournament with a two-under-par 70.

As for defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, the big-hitting American shot an even-par 72.

Trying to successfully defend a PGA Tour title for the first time, world number six DeChambeau mixed three birdies with three bogeys.

It comes as DeChambeau and caddie Tim Tucker take some time apart.

"They have gone their separate ways for now," DeChambeau's agent Brett Falkoff told ESPN. "That doesn't mean forever, but it means they are not working together now. They met last night and decided to move on.

"It's just an accumulation of things, and it's never easy when a player and caddie split up. They just decided the best situation for now was essentially to not be together anymore."

Harris English outlasted Kramer Hickok in a marathon play-off to claim the Travelers Championship on Sunday.

English birdied the eighth play-off hole in a marathon battle against fellow American Kramer at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut.

The eight-hole play-off is tied for second longest in PGA Tour history (2012 Mayakoba Golf Classic, 1983 Phoenix Open, 1981 Quad Cities Open, 1978 Greater Milwaukee Open and 1965 Azalea Open Invitational) – only three holes shy of the record – 11 at 1949 Motor City Open.

English's birdie putt at the eighth extra hole delivered a fourth career Tour title and second of the season after he claimed the Tournament of Champions via sudden death.

A play-off was needed at the Travelers Championship after English and Hickok finished 13 under through 72 regulation holes.

English catapulted himself to the top of the leaderboard with a five-under-par 65 as Hickok's final-round 67 saw him settled for a share of the lead.

March Leishman – the 2012 champion – used a bogey-free six-under-par 64 to earn outright third position, a shot behind English and Hickok, having initially been tied for first in the fourth round.

A stroke further back was Abraham Ancer (65) as four-time major winner Brooks Koepka (65) headlined a group of five players tied for fifth at 10 under.

Former world number one Jason Day was unable to maintain his title charge – an even-par 70 seeing the Australian star fall into a share of 10th spot at nine under.

Bryson DeChambeau also lost ground on the final day following a 70, which left the former U.S. Open champion seven under at the end of the tournament, alongside overnight leader Bubba Watson (73).

Defending champion Dustin Johnson's (71) bid for back-to-back trophies finished in a tie for 25th at six under and he was joined by Patrick Reed (69).

Three-time Travelers Championship winner Bubba Watson is tied for the lead heading into the final round at TPC River Highlands. 

Watson and fellow American Kramer Hickok carded two-under-par 68s on Saturday to lead the tournament at 10 under. 

Second-round leader Jason Day (70) lurks one stroke back along with Cameron Smith (66) and Russell Henley (68) after 54 holes. 

Two-time Masters champion Watson won his first PGA Tour title at the 2010 Travelers and triumphed again in 2015 and 2018 - the latter his most recent Tour victory. 

Watson said he plans to be aggressive on the back nine on Sunday if he is still in contention. 

"You don't want to play safe," he said. "In my stage of my career if I have a chance to win I'm going to go for it.

"That's the key. I'm not going to worry about third or fourth place. I am going to try to go for it if I can."

Hickok was in position for the outright lead, having turned in a flawless round before recording bogeys at 17 and 18. 

Nonetheless, the 29-year-old Texan has at least a share of the lead after 54 holes for the first time on tour as he looks for his first career win. 

Harris English (67), Brice Garnett (69) and K.H. Lee (69) are two shots behind the leaders at eight under, while Dustin Johnson (65) and Bryson DeChambeau (68) are well within striking distance at seven under. 

Brooks Koepka (69) and Patrick Reed (70) are among those at five under. 

Former world number one Jason Day leads the Travelers Championship heading into the weekend after surging to the top of the leaderboard following two rounds.

Day went low in the second round on Friday, carding a bogey-free and Travelers Championship career-best eight-under-par 62 to claim a one-stroke lead at TPC River Highlands.

Winner of the 2015 US PGA Championship and a 12-time PGA Tour champion, Day's career has been hampered by lingering back problems.

Day withdrew from the Memorial Tournament due to a back injury and did not qualify for the U.S. Open, having missed three consecutive cuts before tying for 44th at the PGA Championship.

But Day enjoyed a return to form as the Australian star earned his first lead/co-lead at a non-major tournament since 2017 thanks to a flawless round, which included eight birdies.

"Sometimes when you do have sort of an injury or stiffness, even if you're sick, sometimes you can come out and play some good golf," he said. "I was fortunate enough to not really get in my own way today."

Three-time Travelers Championship winner Bubba Watson (66) and co-overnight leader Kramer Hickok (69) are tied for second at eight under through 36 holes.

Hickok was 10 under before crumbling at the par-three 16th hole, where he three-putted from 18 feet for a double-bogey to end the day alongside Watson.

Russell Henley (66), Kevin Kisner (63), Seamus Power (67), Justin Rose (63), K.H. Lee (64), Brice Garnett (68) and Troy Merritt (65) are all seven under heading into Saturday's third round.

Big-hitting American star Bryson DeChambeau followed up his first-round 69 with a four-under-par 66 to be four strokes off the pace, alongside the likes of 2012 champion Marc Leishman (66) and Patrick Reed (66).

Four-time major champion Brooks Koepka also recorded another round in the 60s – a second-round 67 – to be a shot further back.

PGA Championship winner Phil Mickelson (69) and defending champion Dustin Johnson (68) finished just a shot above the cut line at two under to qualify for the weekend.

Kramer Hickok and Satoshi Kodaira share the one-stroke lead after the opening round of the Travelers Championship, where stars Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson were forced to take a backseat.

Unheralded duo Hickok and Kodaira upstaged the star-studded field following their seven-under-par 63s at TPC River Highlands on Thursday.

Hickok – searching for his maiden PGA Tour title – offset a bogey at this first hole with eight birdies as the American golfer posted a career-low round in Cromwell, Connecticut.

"I really only hit one bad putt — on the par-five 13th. Other than that, I just felt like the holes looked awfully big today," the 29-year-old said. "I made a lot of good putts today, and the greens says are rolling so good that just the holes look big."

Japan's Kodaira matched his best score on the PGA Tour, from the second round of the 2018 RBC Heritage – his only victory.

Kodaira holed out from the fairway for an eagle on the 348-yard par-four second hole.

"I knew it was on target but didn't see it go in," he said. "I heard the applause, so I knew it went in."

Talor Gooch is a shot behind Hickok and Kodaira, while Maverick McNealy, Brice Garnett, Beau Hossler, Henrik Norlander and Patrick Rodgers are a stroke further back heading into the second round.

There is a 31-player logjam tied for 45th position at one under, headlined by DeChambeau, Koepka and Mickelson.

DeChambeau, who was dethroned by Jon Rahm at last week's U.S. Open, mixed three birdies with two bogeys to start his Travelers Championship campaign.

Four-time major champion Koepka also shared an identical round, while US PGA Championship winner Mickelson had four birdies and two bogeys.

"I'm awful the week after a major, especially U.S. Open, because it takes so much out of you," said Koepka, who was tied for fourth behind Rahm at Torrey Pines. "But still should have played better. No excuse. I mean, I'm kind of tired. I am going to enjoy getting to bed tonight."

The likes of Patrick Reed, Adam Scott, Jason Day and Rickie Fowler also shot 69s in round one.

Defending champion Dustin Johnson – who slipped to second in the golf rankings following Rahm's U.S. Open triumph – started his bid for back-to-back titles with an even-par 70.

Corey Conners withstood hammering winds to claim a two-stroke lead following the opening round at the US PGA Championship as Brooks Koepka impressed but Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson struggled.

Prior to Thursday's first round in South Carolina, Conners' best position after any round of a major was equal sixth through 54 holes at this year's Masters at Augusta.

Conners bettered that at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, where the Canadian defied the wind to set the early pace with a five-under-par 67.

Without a victory since his solitary PGA Tour triumph at the 2019 Texas Open, Conners was almost flawless in gusty conditions, holing six birdies with just one bogey.

Conners' lead marks his third career 18-hole lead/co-lead on the PGA Tour (0-for-two to date) and first at a major. Earlier this season, the 29-year-old was tied for the first-round lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and finished third – his best result of the season.

Koepka ended day one in a share of second position alongside Keegan Bradley, Viktor Hovland, Aaron Wise, Sam Horsfield and Cam Davis.

Koepka has been plagued by injuries since winning back-to-back PGA Championships in 2019 and a fourth major title in three years – the American star underwent knee surgery in March before missing the cut at last month's Masters.

But Koepka impressed on Thursday, overcoming a slow start to shoot a three-under-par 69.

Koepka double-bogeyed his opening hole on the back nine, however, the four-time major champion only dropped one shot after that as he tallied six birdies.

He has opened the PGA Championship with a score in the 60s in each of the last six years, the longest such streak at any major in the modern era (since 1934), eclipsing Jack Nicklaus (five – 1972-1976 Masters).

Defending champion Collin Morikawa is a stroke further back alongside the likes of five-time major winner Phil Mickelson.

Big-hitting American and reigning U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau signed for an even-par 72 at the close of the first round, level with Jon Rahm and Justin Rose, while Masters holder Hideki Matsuyama, former world number one Jordan Spieth – eyeing a career Grand Slam – and Xander Schauffele shot 73s.

Jason Day and Patrick Reed were also further down the leaderboard as two-time PGA Championship winner McIlroy and world number one Johnson were powerless in the wind.

McIlroy – seeking a first major trophy since 2014 – recorded a three-over-par 75, which included six bogeys and just three birdies.

Justin Thomas also went three over for the day, while Johnson finished with two double-bogeys and a bogey in a forgettable four-over-par 76 display.

Justin Thomas claimed a one-stroke victory at The Players Championship after a run of three birdies and an eagle across four holes unseated overnight leader Lee Westwood on Sunday.

World number three and American star Thomas – fuelled by a four-under-par 64 – headed into the final round at TPC Sawgrass three strokes adrift of Westwood.

Westwood (72) had finished second at last week's Arnold Palmer Invitational, trailing Bryson DeChambeau (71), who was his nearest competitor again at the end of Saturday's play.

Westwood would be a runner-up once more, but this time was bested by Thomas, who stormed into the lead thanks to a frantic spell.

Westwood lacked momentum throughout his round and was back at 12 under – one over for the day – at the turn when Thomas took flight.

Thomas bogeyed the eighth but responded with a birdie at the ninth and suddenly found form.

He made three at the par-four 10th and then, with the day's decisive putt, claimed the lead outright with an eagle from 19 feet at 11. Another birdie at the next hole secured breathing space.

Although Westwood recovered to end the day as he started it, at 13 under, there was only a brief Thomas wobble with bogey at 14 followed by birdie at 16.

Thomas, who has a single major title at the 2017 US PGA Championship, claimed a maiden triumph at The Players and returned to the winner's circle for the first time since August's WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational.

It is also Thomas' 14th PGA Tour triumph, becoming the fourth player since 1960 to win 14 times on Tour before turning 28 – joining Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus and Johnny Miller.

"I fought so hard today," said Thomas, who tied the lowest final 36-hole score in Players history with his 64-68 (132) over the weekend. "I stayed patient. It was probably one of the best rounds of my life, tee to green."

Brian Harman used a final-round 69 to finish tied for third alongside U.S. Open champion DeChambeau – two shots behind Thomas.

Five-time major champion Phil Mickelson (71) and Jason Day (73) were among the players to end the tournament 35th in the standings, 11 shots off the pace.

Dustin Johnson (71) – the world number one – climbed up into a tie for 48th at one under, a stroke better off than Jordan Spieth (75), who is still without a win since 2017.

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