Scottie Scheffler fired a 9-under-par 61 to rocket into the lead at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the first leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs, on Friday in Memphis. Scheffler's second-lowest round of the year earned him a three-shot advantage over South Korea's Sungjae Im (66) and Norway's Viktor Hovland (64) going into the weekend. The World No. 1 is 11-under 129 at the halfway mark as he seeks his first win since January.
"I wouldn't say golf's ever easy. I did some good things out there," Scheffler said. "I hit some iron shots in there close and was able to hole a few putts as well." The World No. 1 birdied the first five holes at TPC Southwind and added a sixth at No. 7. Bogeys at Nos. 8 and 12 around one birdie at No. 10 took him off the pace for a possible sub-60 round, but he used four more birdies over the final six holes to break from the pack. St. Jude Championship Leaderboard Scheffler one-putted 13 times over 18 holes, a welcome sight after his putter kept him out of contention at certain tournaments this year. "I think it's just golf. That's really all it is," he said. "That's why I talked about being patient yesterday because I felt like I played a little better than my score. It was nice to get out there early and knock in some putts and give myself some really good looks as well." Scheffler was No. 1 in the FedEx Cup points race entering the week, so a victory would not change his position. Im, however, is No. 53 in points and trying to climb into the top 50 to qualify for next week's BMW Championship. His second consecutive 66 puts him in striking distance entering the weekend. Im birdied the first three holes Friday and went out in 5-under 30 before two bogeys sandwiching one birdie late in his round. "Of course, there is some pressure this week, but I just want to focus on each shot and keep doing that through the weekend," Im said. Hovland cruised around the course, making three birdies on each side without a bogey. Four of those birdie putts came from more than 11 feet out. "This week I've been putting quite nicely, and my short game's been really good," said Hovland, a one-time FedEx Cup champion. "So that definitely helps. But if I'm hitting the ball well here, I feel like I'm just going to have a lot of opportunities for birdie." Sweden's Ludvig Aberg shot a 65 to get to 7 under, alone in fourth place. None of the five Round 1 co-leaders replicated their opening rounds of 65. Jordan Spieth carded a 1-under 69 to get to 6 under, where he was tied for fifth with reigning FedEx Cup champ Tommy Fleetwood of England (66), Colombia's Nico Echavarria (66) and Brian Harman (64). Michael Thorbjornsen went from a tie for first to a tie for 38th by following his 65 with a 75. Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland fared better after a rough 4-over 74 to begin the tournament. But back-to-back bogeys at Nos. 17 and 18 left him with an even-par 70 and 4 over for the week. There is no 36-hole cut at any playoff event. MacIntyre WDs from St. Jude Championship Robert MacIntyre withdrew from the FedEx St. Jude Championship prior to the start of the second round on Friday. The PGA Tour listed a knee injury as the reason for the departure of MacIntyre, who limped to a 12-over 82 during the first round at TPC Southwind in Memphis. The 30-year-old left-hander from Scotland sat 17 strokes behind first-round co-leaders Jordan Spieth, Michael Kim, Michael Thorbjornsen, Jake Knapp and Kurt Kitayama. MacIntyre recorded a triple bogey on the par-4 sixth hole on Thursday and double bogeys on the fourth, 15th and 18th holes. He was playing for the first time since last month's Open Championship. MacIntyre resides at 31st on the FedExCup points list heading into next week's field at the BMW Championship. He has six professional wins on his resume, including two on the PGA Tour. He finished in second place at the 2025 U.S. Open. This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Scottie Scheffler fires 61 to jump into FedEx St. Jude lead: Golf roundup