– Adam Svensson (-11) is the first leader of the 3M Open with a stellar round of 60 strokes this Thursday at the TPC Twin Cities in Minnesota. The Canadian player has set a new course record with a fabulous sequence of nine birdies and an eagle on his final hole as the crowning glory. This impressive round opens a door of hope in his battle to maintain playing rights on the PGA Tour. He entered this tournament, the penultimate of the regular season, in 170th place in the FedEx Cup. It’s never too late to turn the season around.
– Svensson has been the best in the birdie festival of the first day. It rained a lot on Wednesday, making the course very receptive and accessible on Thursday. Rounds of 65 strokes were left out of the top 10, and the provisional cut is at -3, projecting six under par this Friday. You have to go very low to give yourself a chance this week.
– Someone who finds it easy to go low lately is Chris Gotterup (-8). The recent Scottish Open champion has placed fourth with a card of 63 strokes. He continues on his infinite cloud. It doesn’t matter whether it’s links, Europe, the Open, or Minnesota. He’s in a sweet moment and wants to make the most of it. He has the playoffs more than secured with the 11 top 25 finishes he has this year, in addition to the victory at The Renaissance Club. His goal now is much more ambitious and is called the Ryder Cup. Watch out for him.
– Great start from Matti Schmid (-8), Rickie Fowler (-6), or Emiliano Grillo (-6), players who are fighting to get into the top 70 of the FedEx Cup to access the Playoffs. Max Homa (-5) hasn’t started badly either, but the demand for birdies is so brutal and the battle so ruthless on this circuit that this round doesn’t guarantee him anything. Not only does he not improve his projection in the FedEx with this start, but he drops from 102nd to 106th place, and he doesn’t even have the cut secured. Adam Scott (-2) or Tom Kim (-3) are also in a critical situation, currently out of the Playoffs.
