Kevin Roy and Aldrich Potgieter shoot Rocket Classic-record 62s to share 1st-round lead
Associated Press
DETROIT (AP) — Kevin Roy and Aldrich Potgieter each shot 10-under 62 on Thursday to break the Rocket Classic record and share the first-round lead.
Detroit Golf Club has been one of the easiest courses since the PGA Tour made it an annual stop in 2019. A pair of Korn Ferry graduates took full advantage.
Potgieter, the 20-year-old South African who grew up in Australia, started at No. 10 and set a tournament record with a 7-under 29 on the back nine. He added three birdies on his back nine and caught the left edge on a 12-foot putt on his final hole.
Potgieter and the 35-year-old Roy each had an eagle and eight birdies in bogey-free rounds.
As well as Roy and Potgieter played, they can't get comfortable on a short course with greens that are even more receptive than usual with recent rain.
Min Woo Lee, Max Greyserman and Mark Hubbard were a stroke back after matching the previous tournament record of 63. Andrew Putnam shot a 64, and two-time major champion Zach Johnson was in the group another shot back.
While the course is easy as usual, the competition is relatively strong for the tournament that many top players have skipped in the past.
The field includes nine of the top 50 players in the world, led by fifth-ranked Collin Morikawa, who opened with a 69. Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley, the Travelers Championship winner last week, is No. 7 in the world. He shot a 68.
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NBC Sports
26 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
Morikawa struggles with putting at Rocket Classic
Watch Collin Morikawa in the first round of the Rocket Classic, where he finished with 32 putts. The two-time major winner explains his struggles during the round and discusses expectations.
NBC Sports
41 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
Padraig Harrington's bogey outshines birdies as he shares lead at U.S. Senior Open
Watch the best shots and top moments from the first round of the PGA Tour's 2025 Rocket Classic at Detroit Golf Club. COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Padraig Harrington made four birdies Thursday, though it was the bogey he saved after losing a tee shot deep in a thicket of trees on the 15th hole that helped him keep a share of the first-round lead with Mark Hensby at the U.S. Senior Open. The leaders shot 3-under 67 for a one-shot edge over a group of six, including Stewart Cink, who hit the first 17 greens before making bogey after coming up short on No. 18. Harrington, the 2022 U.S. Senior champion, made all four birdies on the (easier) front nine at the Broadmoor and was leading by one when he snapped his tee shot on the par-4 15th deep into the woods. The Irishman took a cart back to the tee box for his third shot, then hit that into the right rough. His approach to 20 feet and the ensuing make limited the damage and he made three pars on the way in to stay atop the leaderboard. It was quite a different scene for Hensby, who made seven birdies on his front nine and got to 6 under at the turn, but finished bogey-bogey for his 67. He looked and sounded anything like a leader of a major championship afterward. 'Obviously, I felt like I lost some out there,' Hensby said. 'It's just frustrating. I played like (expletive) the back nine. What else can you say?' Hensby's bogeys each came after drives that missed the fairway and landed in rough that is thick — yet maybe not the biggest problem at this course nestled at the base of Cheyenne Mountain, which influences every putt. 'It's just a different version of what we saw at Oakmont, with really treacherous greens,' said Notah Begay, who made the field as an alternate and shot even par. 'We got a break today, to be fair.' It was, indeed, a calm, partly cloudy day less than 36 hours removed from a massive thunderstorm that soaked and softened the course. Even so, only 17 players finished under par with a few in the 156-man field still on the course as dusk approached. When the tournament was last played here in 2018, David Toms won with a score of 3 under par — a number that made Hensby's 6 under after nine that much more remarkable. But the Aussie, who shot 63 in the second round of last year's U.S. Open at Newport Country Club was more focused on the back nine. 'I've never been a very consistent player,' he said. 'I'm hot or cold, and that kind of sucks. Certain shots I keep hitting during rounds, it just (ticks) me off, so to speak. So yeah, the back nine was just kind of a bit of that.'
Fox Sports
44 minutes ago
- Fox Sports
Tampa Bay Rays' Wander Franco convicted of sexually abusing a child and gets a suspended sentence
Associated Press PUERTO PLATA, Dominican Republic (AP) — Suspended Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco was convicted of sexually abusing a child and handed a two-year suspended sentence Thursday. Franco was arrested last year after being accused of having a four-month relationship with a girl who was 14 at the time, and of transferring thousands of dollars to her mother to consent to the illegal relationship. Franco, now 24, was found not guilty of charges of sexual and commercial exploitation against a minor and human trafficking. Judge Jakayra Veras García said Franco made a bad decision as she addressed him during the ruling. 'Look at us, Wander,' she said. 'Do not approach minors for sexual purposes. If you don't like people very close to your age, you have to wait your time." Prosecutors had requested a five-year prison sentence against Franco and a 10-year sentence against the girl's mother, who was found guilty and will serve the full term. 'Apparently she was the one who thought she was handling the bat in the big leagues,' Veras said of the mother and her request that Franco pay for her daughter's schooling and other expenses. Franco's attorney, Irina Ventura, said she would appeal the judge's ruling: 'Evidently, justice was not done." Meanwhile, prosecutor Luis Martínez said he was pleased with the rulings but did not say whether the government would appeal. Before the three judges issued their unanimous ruling, Veras reviewed the extensive evidence prosecutors presented during trial, including testimony from 31 witnesses. 'This is a somewhat complex process,' Veras said. More than an hour into her presentation, Veras said: 'The court has understood that this minor was manipulated.' As the judge continued her review, Franco looked ahead expressionless, leaning forward at times. Franco, who was once the team's star shortstop, had signed a $182 million, 11-year contract through 2032 in November 2021 but saw his career abruptly halted in August 2023 after authorities in the Dominican Republic announced they were investigating him for an alleged relationship with a minor. Franco was 22 at the time. In January 2024, authorities arrested Franco in the Dominican Republic. Six months later, Tampa Bay placed him on the restricted list, which cut off the pay he had been receiving while on administrative leave. He was placed on that list because he has not been able to report to the team and would need a new U.S. visa to do so. While Franco awaited trial on conditional release, he was arrested again in November last year following what Dominican authorities called an altercation over a woman's attention. He was charged with illegally carrying a semiautomatic Glock 19 that police said was registered to his uncle. That case is still pending in court. After the ruling, Major League Baseball issued a brief statement noting it had collectively bargained a joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy 'that reflects our commitment to these issues.' 'We are aware of today's verdict in the Wander Franco trial and will conclude our investigation at the appropriate time,' MLB said. ___ Associated Press writers Dánica Coto in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Ron Blum in New York contributed to this report. recommended
