Patrick Cantlay still firing low scores at The American Express, shares lead with 62

Patrick Cantlay finished the 2021 American Express on fire in the final round, and he started the 2022 event Thursday just as hot.

One year after shooting a Sunday 61 to finish second in La Quinta last year, Cantlay threatened a 59 early in the day Thursday before settling for a 10-under 62. But at The American Express, where low scoring is the norm, Cantlay is only tied for the lead with Lee Hodges.

“I got off to a roll at the start and kind of made a bunch of putts and then I kind of lagged on the way coming in,” said Cantlay, who was 7 under on his first seven holes at La Quinta Country Club. “But I was happy with everything. I thought I did everything well, and it's a golf course I really like. It's in perfect shape and so if you get the ball rolling on line it should go in.”

Cantlay and Hodges hold a two-shot lead over Cameron Young, whose 64 was one of the best rounds at La Quinta, where most of the low scores in the opening round were shot. Thirteen of the lowest 23 scores on the day came from La Quinta Country Club, being played in the tournament for the 50th time this week. K.H. Lee, playing late in the day, fired a 64 on the Stadium Course at PGA West to pull into a tie for third.

Nine players, including veteran Brandt Snedeker, shot 65 on the day and shares fifth place with seven other golfers.

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Among the 11 players who shot 66 in the first round are world No. 1 Jon Rahm and former U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell, who both played at La Quinta. The low score on the Stadium Course at PGA West was Lee's 64, while four players shot 65 at the Nicklaus Course at PGA West.

The surprise of the day came from tournament host and 2021 PGA Championship winner Phil Mickelson. Playing the same La Quinta Country Club course as the leaders, Mickelson hit three drives out of bounds on the way to a 6-over 78. That ties Mickelson for last place in the 156-player field.

Cantlay, whose low round on the PGA Tour is a 60, seemed to be threatening every PGA Tour and tournament record with his sizzling start Thursday. The reigning PGA Tour player of the year had four birdies in his first five holes, then eagled the par-5 sixth to get to 6-under through six. With a birdie on the par-3 seventh, he was 7 under on a course where Adam Hadwin shot a 59 in the 2017 American Express.

Three pars in a row slowed Cantlay, but that was followed by three consecutive birdies. With 59 still in play, Cantlay made pars on his final five holes for the mere 62.

Cantlay, who won the BMW Championship and Tour Championship in his final two starts last year and opened this year with a fourth-place finish two weeks ago in Hawaii at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, said the 62 wasn’t quite like the 61 he shot in 2021 at the Stadium Course, the toughest of the three courses.

Not quite the round of 2021

“Last year's final round was really special. Like I said, I got a bunch of good breaks that day as well as playing really well,” he said. “Today, this golf course is more gettable. So I played very nicely today, but I maybe didn't, I didn't chip in or do anything crazy. If you play really well around this golf course, you can shoot 8, 9, 10-under.”

On a leader board full of major championship winners, award winners and highly ranked golfers, Hodges would seem like the golfer who doesn’t fit in. The 2020 winner of the WinCo Foods Portland Open on the Korn Ferry Tour is on the tour with an exemption as one of the top 50 players from the 2020-21 developmental tour.

The Alabama native’s best finish this season is a tie for 27th at the Shriners Children’s Open in Las Vegas. But with eight birdies and an eagle Thursday, Hodges matched his lowest score ever on the Korn Ferry circuit and beat his PGA Tour scoring record for a round by three shots.

Hodges said he’s actually been playing well heading into the Sony Open last week, though he missed the cut in Hawaii.

“I was playing some of my best golf I played in a long time. And then just kind of didn't play well in the tournament,” Hodges said. “Here, there, you can say what you want, but I knew that my game was there to play really well, so just got to try to change a little bit of my attitude, I think that was a big help.”

Hodges agreed that La Quinta is a course where low scoring should happen.

“It's one of my favorite golf courses I've ever played to be honest,” Hodges said. “I played it I guess three times now and it's spectacular. It's like hitting off of mats half the time. It's just in perfect shape. You get rewarded for good shots out here, which I like that. Good golf gets rewarded.”

Both Cantlay and Hodges rotate to the Nicklaus Tournament Course on Friday before heading to the Stadium Course for potentially two rounds on the weekend.

“I think it's supposed to blow pretty good, 15 or 20 miles an hour on Saturday, I'm supposed to play Stadium that day, so that's probably the course you would want least when it's blowing,” Cantlay said.

Must-watch groups

Nicklaus Tournament Course

1st tee

9 a.m.: Lee Hodges, Paul Barjon

10th Tee

8:50 a.m.: Phil Mickelson, Rickie Fowler

10 a.m.: Patrick Cantlay, Scottie Scheffler

10:30 a.m.: Jon Rahm, Tony Finau

Stadium Course

1st tee

10 a.m.: Abraham Ancer, Sungjae Im

10:30 a.m.: Jason Day, Justin Rose

La Quinta Country Club

10th tee

10 a.m.: Matthew Wolff, Gary Woodland

10:30 a.m.: Davis Love III, Brendan Todd

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: American Express: Patrick Cantlay, Lee Hodges match opening 62s