With most people watching tournament host Tiger Woods, seventh-ranked Patrick Cantlay went low in virtual obscurity.
Cantlay, from Los Alamitos and UCLA, shot seven-under-par 64 to take a one-stroke lead over Jason Day of Australia, Luke List and Cam Davis of Australia after one round of the 96th Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades.
Woods, playing for the first time on the PGA Tour since withdrawing from the Masters and undergoing a second surgery on his right leg, shanked his second shot on the last hole and closed with a bogey to cap a 72 and is tied for 49th.
“My back spasmed on it,” Woods said of his errant shot on No. 18. “It’s been spasming for the last three holes, and it just locked up on me there. I didn’t move, didn’t rotate, and presented hosel first.
“It’s impossible to prepare for this return. I rely so much on experience and having done this a long time, but still having the adrenaline dump in the system, the ball goes further, the speed goes up, and just the yardages are a little bit different than they are at home. It’s just different, and that’s just a part of playing competitive golf.
“We’ve got some treatment ahead of us and some work to do, to be ready for tomorrow. That’s just part of the deal, and I look forward to the challenge.”
Cantlay birdied five of the first eight holes and added three birdies early on the back nine before making his lone bogey at No. 16.
The bogey came after he hit his tee shot into a tree on the par-three hole.
“It’s a spot I’ve never been, and I’ve been in most places on this golf course,” said Cantlay, who has played Riviera often since he grew up in Southern California and played at nearby UCLA. “I’ve been in most places on his golf course, but not there.
“Our group had good momentum. We were a bunch under on the front nine and it was a day where I putted really, really well. I made every putt I should have and a couple longer ones. Eight birdies and one bogey, that’s a great start.”
Day and List both carded a bogey-free 65s, while Davis made five of his seven birdies on the back nine.
Jordan Spieth, playing alongside Cantlay, collected five of six birdies on the front nine in a 66 and is tied for fourth with Will Zalatoris, who made four straight birdies on the front nine, and Tom Hoge, who birdied the last three holes, while Byeong Hun An of South Korea made a four-foot eagle putt at No. 17 in a 67 and is tied for eighth with Adam Svensson of Canada, who birdied the last two holes.
Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler holed out from 39 feet for an eagle on the first hole to kick-start a 68 and is tied for 10th with Beau Hossler of Rancho Santa Margarita, who had three birdies on the front nine, Ludvig Aberg of Sweden, Brendon Todd and J.T. Poston.
Tenth-ranked Brian Harman shot 69 and is tied for 15th, while fourth-ranked Viktor Hovland of Norway totaled 70 and is in a tie for 28th that includes fifth-ranked Xander Schauffele of La Jolla and San Diego State.
Sixth-ranked Wyndham Clark is tied for 43rd at 71, while eighth-ranked Max Homa of Valencia and Cal shot 73 and is tied for 60th, second-ranked Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland mad a double-bogey and a triple-bogey on the back nine in a 74 to tie for 64th, and ninth-ranked Matt Fitzpatrick of England is tied for 67th at 75.
The top 50 players, and any others within 10 strokes of the lead, will make the cut after the second round on Friday.
For complete results and second-round tee times, visit: https://www.pgatour.com/leaderboard
