LAS VEGAS – Robert Streb went from simply making putts to wondering if he would ever miss Thursday in the CJ Cup at Summit. It led to his best start at any tournament and his lowest score on the PGA Tour.
And yet on this day at the Summit Club, his 11-under-par 61 was only good for a one-shot lead.
A world-class field lit up a very pretty and mostly defenseless golf course overlooking the Las Vegas Strip. The result was the lowest average score – 68.95 – for the opening round of a PGA Tour event in 2021.
Streb had 10 birdies and an eagle and led by one shot over Chattanooga native Keith Mitchell, who had more birdies than pars in matching his own low round with a 62. Harry Higgs was two strokes further back in third, with Hudson Swafford, Spain’s Sergio Garcia and Norway’s Viktor Hovland tied for fourth at 65. Such scoring in ideal conditions was what players were expecting on this Tom Fazio design, and 25 of 78 players in the field were at 67 or lower.
Mitchell, a 29-year-old former Baylor School and University of Georgia standout, missed the cut last week down the road at the TPC Summerlin and then spent five days working harder than most visitors to Las Vegas, and it helped that putting coach Ramon Bescansa was in town.