Venezuelan Makes History with Stunning Finish at Quail Hollow

A stunning late charge from Jhonattan Vegas stole the spotlight on day one of the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow. The Venezuelan fired five birdies in his final six holes to post a 7-under 64, building a two-shot lead over the field and making history as the first Venezuelan man to lead after any round of a major championship.

“This is Jhonnatan Vegas’ 45th career major championship round. He has never been higher on the leaderboard than 9th after any of them,” noted stats guru Justin Ray on social media.

Lesser-Known Names Shine

For most of the day, it looked like Ryan Gerard and Cam Davis would share the overnight lead after each posted 5-under 66. Davis actually pushed to 6-under and held the solo lead briefly before a bogey on his final hole dropped him back into a tie with Gerard.

The leaderboard features several surprising names near the top, with Luke Donald, Ryan Fox, Alex Smalley, Stephan Jaeger and Aaron Rai all sitting three shots back at 4-under. A group of eleven players, including Matt Fitzpatrick, Keegan Bradley and amateur Michael Thorbjornsen, are tied at 3-under.

Top Players Struggle

The marquee grouping of the world’s top three players produced mixed results. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler navigated his way to a 2-under 69 despite a double bogey and two bogeys. However, his playing partners suffered through difficult days, with defending champion Xander Schauffele posting a 2-over 73 and Rory McIlroy – a four-time winner at Quail Hollow – stumbling to a 3-over 74.

McIlroy, fresh off completing the career Grand Slam at the Masters, looked uncomfortable throughout his round at a venue where he’s enjoyed tremendous success in the past.

Mud Ball Controversy

Much of the players’ frustration centered around the PGA of America’s decision not to implement lift, clean and place rules despite the course receiving nearly five inches of rain in the two days before the tournament.

“It’s frustrating to hit the ball in the middle of the fairway and get mud on it and have no idea where it’s going to go,” Scheffler said. “I understand it’s part of the game, but there’s nothing more frustrating for a player. You spend your whole life trying to learn how to control a golf ball, and due to a rules decision all of a sudden you have absolutely no control over where that golf ball goes.”

Jordan Spieth’s quest to complete the career Grand Slam also took an early hit with a 4-over 75, putting him in danger of missing the weekend cut, currently projected around 1-over.

The second round begins Friday morning with Vegas looking to build on his surprising lead while many of golf’s biggest names try to play catch-up.