LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Max Homa came to Louisville looking for birdies. Justin Thomas apparently wanted to make sure he found bourbon.
Homa said the Louisville native had been texting him this week, but not with advice about Hurstbourne Country Club.
"He just told me if I wanted to go out to the bars on Sunday, his friends would take me," Homa said with a laugh.
The joke landed because Homa almost wasn't here.
Fresh off a runner-up finish at last week's John Deere Classic, Homa learned he'd earned a spot in next week's Open Championship. Had he known sooner, he admitted, he likely would've spent this week in Scotland preparing for links golf.
Instead, he honored his commitment to Louisville.
"I did feel a bit of an obligation, in a good way, to play this," Homa said. "I got to speak with a bunch of the people who put this event on, and I've been reached out to by a lot of people who were very excited I was coming. It would've felt not so good skipping."
The decision paid him back almost immediately.
"By the fourth hole of my practice round yesterday, there was a kid standing in his backyard with a sign for me," Homa said. "As you get older, you realize maybe the impact coming to an event can have."
The six-time PGA Tour winner opened with a bogey-free 67 and said the gallery, especially the young fans following his group, reminded him why weeks like this matter.
"It warms your heart when you see a bunch of 7- to 12-year-olds," Homa said. "That's what I did growing up... There's nothing more fun than getting to see the people you watch on TV play in person."
Glover's review: More courses like this
Lucas Glover didn't just shoot 63 Thursday.
He offered a review of Hurstbourne that tournament organizers probably wouldn't mind framing.
The former U.S. Open champion called the course "fair" and said “I wish we played more like it.” He said he’s enjoying the course, and Louisville.
"I feel like too many people try to play God with the golf courses," Glover said. "This one, the conditions determine what the scores are going to be and that's how it should be."
Glover backed it up by hitting 17 of 18 greens in regulation while extending his streak to eight consecutive rounds in the 60s.
Home game for Musselman
There aren't many weeks when Cooper Musselman gets to sleep in his own bed.
This is one of them.
The Louisville native called the ISCO Championship his "home game," saying it's refreshing to trade hotel rooms for home and anonymous galleries for familiar voices.
"I love having a home game," Musselman said. "Love hearing the 'Go Tigers,' 'Go Cards,' 'Go Cats.'"
The St. Xavier graduate and former Kentucky golfer shot 66 Thursday, leaving himself three shots off the lead heading into Friday.
“Loved ending the day on a high note. It's definitely going to make lunch taste a little better. It's just great. Setting up for tomorrow, I haven't really thought about tomorrow. I've got a long day off. I think I'm not going to tee off until 2 tomorrow. So really just going to try to rest and relax and honestly just turn my brain off and just kind of relax.
If Musselman could make the cut, it would mark just the third he has made in PGA events.
A Louisville homecoming
Former University Louisville golfer Adam Hadwin didn’t grow up here, but his time in the city as a college golfer makes every return a homecoming.
"I wouldn't call it a home game," the Canadian said. "But it's as close as I'm going to get other than the Canadian Open."
Hadwin spent part of last year's tournament driving around campus revisiting places from his college days.
He opened this year's event with a 3-under 67.
“I've done OK in the events I've played on Korn Ferry, I just haven't been able to put it together out here for the PGA Tour events I've played,” Hadwin said. “So hopefully some of those good vibes here being back where I went to school will kind of kickstart a nice little run here towards the end of the year.
Around Hurstbourne
- Steven Fisk's opening 63 was the lowest PGA TOUR round of his career. After opening with a bogey, he rattled off five consecutive birdies on Nos. 2-6. It was also his first 18-hole lead on TOUR.
- Last year's first-round leader, Chan Kim, is back near the top after opening with a 6-under 64, one shot behind the leaders.
- Sam Bairstow became the first player to record two eagles in a round at Hurstbourne Country Club, making them on Nos. 8 and 10.
- Four players sharing the first-round lead tied the tournament record, matching 2017, and marked the sixth time in the last 10 PGA TOUR events that four or more players have shared the 18-hole lead.
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