Tom Hoge hits his second shot on Thursday on the 8th hole at Pebble Beach.
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He had just finished playing what this website rates as the 14th-best course in the world, on a chamber of commerce kind of day, when Tom Hoge said what a lot of us would be thinking. “I mean, it’s hard to be in a bad mood out here,” he said. “I mean, Pebble Beach and perfect weather is about as good as it gets.” As was his scorecard. Here are three things you need to know after Thursday’s first round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, played at Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill and Monterey Peninsula, in California.
Tom Hoge leads
And nowhere was Hoge’s scorecard more ideal than on Pebble’s front nine. After starting on the back, he reeled off six birdies in a row beginning on the par-4 3rd, shot a nine-under 63 and grabbed a one-shot lead.
Included in the run was a chip-in from over the green on the par-4 4th.
“It was a lot of fun,” Hoge said. “I feel like I’ve been playing well. I’ve been excited to get out here on the golf course and feel like Pebble Beach is a golf course that suits me well, so I was excited to get out here this week.”
One back of Hoge was Seamus Power, and two behind were Jonas Blixt and Austin Smotherman.
Patrick Cantlay is three behind
Three back was Patrick Cantlay, who, at No. 4, is the only top 10 player in the field.
Cantlay was three-under through 13 at Monterey, then birdied his final three holes.
“Yeah, I started off strong and had a weird middle of the round, definitely gave a few away,” he said. “And then closed really strong. So finishing with three in a row on this golf course is a really nice finish, and I’m happy with my start for the week.”
Jason Day is five back
Among other players, Jason Day is five back after a 68 at Pebble Beach, Matt Fitzpatrick is six back after a 69 at Pebble, and Jordan Spieth is also six back, after a 68 at Monterey.
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