The first round of the 2023 Tournament of Champions was everything you’d want from the opening event of a calendar year: Superstars at the top, birdies all over the yard and — of course! — Jordan Spieth doing his normal unicycle ride while juggling flaming torches.

A trio of leaders sit at the top of the field as Collin Morikawa, Jon Rahm and J.J. Spaun all co-lead at 9 under on the par-73 Kapalua course. A crowded pack that includes Tom Kim, Tom Hoge, Sungjae Im and Scottie Scheffler is hot on their heels, however. That means there’s plenty of star power capable of making a run over the next three days. 

We’ll dive into their rounds below, as well as what to expect the rest of the week from this loaded field. With the first event of 2023 underway, let’s dive into the first round of the Tournament of Champions. 

The leaders

T1. Jon Rahm, J.J. Spaun, Collin Morikawa (-9): Rahm followed his 33-under performance a year ago with a 9-under 63 on Thursday, and he now has 40 birdies and two eagles in his last 90 holes at Kapalua. After playing the front nine in 31, he got into a bothersome spot on the back with a bogey at the par-4 14th. That bogey set him back a bit, but he closed with three birdies in his last four holes, including a near-eagle at the last hole that turned into an easy bird.

Rahm is going to be extraordinarily difficult to keep up with if he putts like he did on Thursday when he led the field at nearly four strokes gained on the round (Matt Fitzpatrick and Viktor Hovland were second best at 2.07). He likely won’t putt like that, but good luck to the field against somebody who is averaging 8.4 strokes under par in his last five rounds here.

Other contenders

4. Tom Kim (-8)

T5. Matt Fitzpatrick, Aaron Wise, Tom Hoge, Mackenzie Hughes, Sungjae Im, Scottie Scheffler (-7)

Scheffler was probably the most interesting out of this group. He putted horribly — he lost nearly two strokes on the greens and made one putt over 5 feet — but he still shot 66. That’s scary coming from the No. 2 player in the world. Scheffler has something at stake here beyond winning, too. He needs a top-three finish to regain the No. 1 ranking in the world from Rory McIlroy, who is not playing this week at Kapalua.

Kim exceeding expectations

It probably shouldn’t surprise me that Kim shot 65, but it still does. As bullish as I am on him as a person and a potential star, I’m equally dubious that his statistical profile meets the modern thriving top-10 player. And yet, at every level he’s played, he’s continued to win and win and win. In 81 OWGR starts, he has eight wins, and his PGA Tour winning percentage is slightly better. I want to be wrong about him in the long term because he’s so much fun to write about and cover (see below), but I have to say I didn’t necessarily see this round coming from him at Kapalua.

Shot of the day

Jordan Spieth had a very Jordan Spieth round. He missed a 2-foot putt but also took a full swing from 33 feet away on the 15th hole for par following some problems in the bunker on his third shot. If you’ve ever tried to take a full swing with any club from 30 feet, it’s basically impossible to hole the shot, but here we are.

Spieth also had an amazing exchange in which he asked two gentleman at the event if they could tone down the wagering chatter while he was putting. A very normal early season start for Spieth.

Shot of the day, Part II 

The hole-out eagle was great, but Kim asking the cameras if they caught it was even better.

Morikawa is fine

I recently wrote about some of the consternation surrounding Collin Morikawa at the end of 2022, a year in which he did not win. This stat from Data Golf should sum up how I feel about where he’s at right now:

• Strokes gained 2020-21 season: 1.41 (3 wins)
• Strokes gained 2021-22 season: 1.41 (0 wins)

Furthermore, Morikawa’s ceiling didn’t really change. He went from third to sixth in the world in 95th percentile rounds. In other words, his best stuff was still among the best stuff of other top-10 players in the world. What did change is that he didn’t win, which can be attributed to so many other things (luck, good bounces, field makeup etc.). Morikawa was undervalued overall coming into 2023, and though he won’t play as well as he did on Thursday for the rest of the year, I think it’s emblematic of what we could be in for with him this year. There’s still time to buy low.

2023 Tournament of Champions updated odds and picks

• Jon Rahm: +240
• Collin Morikawa: +650
• Scottie Scheffler: 8-1
• Tom Kim: 12-1
• Sungjae Im: 14-1
• Tony Finau: 16-1
• Matt Fitzpatrick: 16-1
• Jordan Spieth: 22-1
• Viktor Hovland: 22-1
• Aaron Wise: 22-1

To the surprise of nobody, I’m in on Spieth at 22-1. He plays great at this golf course, and he’s helped when he has a lot of external things going on (slope, wind, etc.) because it gets him out of his own head. He didn’t even putt well on Thursday and still found a way to shoot 67. In terms of the leaders, Morikawa at +650 is the play for me. Rahm’s putting round was magnificent, which won’t continue, and Morikawa is still being a tad undervalued because he’s coming on off a year in which he didn’t win at all.

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While he may no longer hold the honor of being the top player in the world, Jon Rahm looked the part on Friday at the 2022 CJ Cup in South Carolina. After a middling performance on Thursday saw him sign for a 2-under 69, the Spaniard put things into hyperdrive in his second round, riding a hot putter to a course record 9-under 62 and a share of the 36-hole lead with Kurt Kitayama.

Standing at 11 under for the tournament, it’s baffling to suggest that Rahm could have gone even lower in Round 2 — but he could have done exactly that. Letting two birdie opportunities from inside 10 feet fall by the wayside and making bogey on his final hole of the day with a pitching wedge in hand from the middle of the fairway, the former world No. 1’s dinner may not taste as sweet as he had once hoped.

Rahm retreated with his dropped shot on 18, and not only shares the top spot on the leaderboard with Kitayama but is only one stroke clear of Cam Davis and Aaron Wise. However, even more dangerous than those two previous PGA Tour winners is Rory McIlroy — the man who has accomplished such a feat 22 times in his career and is only two off the lead after rounds of 66-67.

The leaders

T1. Jon Rahm and Kurt Kitayama (-11)

Not a ton of people know about Kitayama, and this was on full display in his post-round interview. Members of the media asked how he earned his PGA Tour card this year even though it is his second season and he finished inside the top 70 of the 2021-22 FedEx Cup, and it just goes to show what he may be up against over the weekend.

To say he’s just a random player plucked from the depths of the PGA Tour would be a massive slight, however. The Las Vegas resident traversed through the DP World Tour to begin his career, an unconventional route, and was rewarded with a pair of victories in 2019. 

He rarely flinches when in contention, but the problem is the consistency in which he is able to position himself near the top of the leaderboard. Last year, Kitayama notched three top-three finishes at the Scottish Open, Honda Classic and the Mexico Open where he fell to Rahm by a single stroke.

Other contenders

T3. Cam Davis and Aaron Wise (-10)

5. Rory McIlroy (-9)

T6. Lee Hodges, Tyrrell Hatton, K.H. Lee, Billy Horschel, Tom Hoge, Brendon Todd, Shane Lowry and Tom Kim (-7)

What a bizarre two days for Wise, and I mean that in the best possible way. After having one of the best single-round iron performances of the last decade on Thursday, the former PGA Tour Rookie of the Year relied primarily on his putter Friday. Gaining north of three strokes on the greens in the second round, it will be interesting to see if the 26-year-old will be able to marry the two over the final 36 holes.

“Really, just green reading after the round yesterday. I felt like I misread a few putts so I just went out there with my caddie, did a few green-reading drills, put some coins out, make sure they were breaking the way I thought they were,” said Wise. “Seemed like today I saw the lines a little better; it kind of matched up with what I was seeing and some putts dropped.”

Jon Rahm is a man possessed on the greens

Earlier in the week, I asked Rahm about his hot streak on the greens over his last four tournaments, which he has continued at Congaree through the first two days. The Spaniard simply replied, “I’m confident,” and he displayed this confidence in the second round. Gaining north of 3.5 strokes on the putting surfaces — in addition to a putt made from off the green on No. 16 — the flat stick remains the club to watch in regards to Rahm, but in a completely different light compared to earlier this year.

“Yesterday, I’m going out on the early shift with the greens a little bit faster, a little bit more slick, right. Those are about as good of greens as you’re ever going to find. After spending the last few months in Europe and Arizona with over-seeding, I haven’t seen greens like this in a long time,” said Rahm. “So it’s one thing to do it on the putting green, and it’s one thing to do it on the course. Yesterday, it seems it took me a little bit to get used to the greens, but towards the end I had it down and putted really, really well, so today I just kept it going.” 

2022 CJ Cup updated odds, picks

Odds via Caesars Sportsbook

• Jon Rahm: 17/10
• Rory McIlroy: 33/10
• Aaron Wise: 8-1
• Kurt Kitayama: 17/2
• Cam Davis: 9-1
• Tom Kim: 22-1
• Shane Lowry: 30-1
• Tyrrell Hatton: 50-1
• Tom Hoge: 50-1

Halfway through this tournament, and only nine players find themselves with odds of 50-1 or shorter. There is plenty of respect at the top of this market, and rightfully so. When given the choice between Rahm and McIlroy versus the field, it’s hard to not look in the direction of the two Europeans.

Still, there is a ton of golf to be played, and we have seen already that big numbers lurk around Congaree. With this in mind, it is another European in Shane Lowry who looks to be a fine option. The Irishman accidentally damaged his putter in the first round and was able to overcome this obstacle with strong iron play; he ranks third in strokes gained approach and fourth in strokes gained tee to green. At 7 under, he is only four strokes off the lead and sits at a price similar to what he was at the onset of the week.

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While many on the East Coast of the United States were fast asleep, LIV Golf kicked off its sixth event of its inaugural season. The LIV Golf event in Bangkok started swimmingly at Stonehill Golf Course as bombers and plodders alike effectively maneuvered around the relatively brand new golf course built by Thai billionaire Sarath Ratanavadi.

Showcasing the depth of the field and wide range of age — something LIV was heavily criticized for at first — the youngest and one of the eldest members of the circuit find their names at the top of the leaderboard. It appears Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra has finally hit his stride as a professional after a bogey-free 7-under 65 in the first round in Bangkok.

The former No. 2 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, Chacarra represents the type of golfer LIV Golf hopes to attract moving forward. Young, energetic, and relevant through previous amateur and collegiate play, the 22-year-old shares the lead with English journeyman Richard Bland and LIV Portland winner Branden Grace.

LIV CEO Greg Norman and Co. may secretly be hoping for a Chacarra triumph, but it will not come without some stress. Four-time major championship winner Brooks Koepka is not far off the pace after a 5-under 67 — a welcomed sight for Smash GC fans. Koepka has struggled in his four prior LIV appearances and has yet to crack the top 10.

While Koepka hopes to break this dry spell, the current season-long points leader Dustin Johnson will have some work to do over the next 36 holes in order to keep his streak alive. The LIV Boston winner and captain of the 4 Aces is a perfect 5-for-5 finishing inside the top 10 and finds himself in a tie for 21st after signing for a 2-under 70. 

Johnson and the rest of his 4 Aces squad are in unfamiliar territory as well as they sit 10th in the team competition. Arriving in Bangkok off four straight victories, they will need to track down Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs if the dynasty is to stay afloat.

The leaders

T1. Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra, Richard Bland, Branden Grace (-7)

It is easy to forget how young some professional golfers are in this day and age as they burst onto the scene earlier and earlier each year. Chacarra is no different after experiencing a strong amateur and collegiate career at Oklahoma State. Joining LIV Golf in Portland, the Spaniard’s team claimed a spot on the podium in dramatic fashion thanks to a 54th-hole birdie from Carlos Ortiz. 

While there was joy and jubilation from the team’s perspective, individually, Chacarra has struggled. Capturing a T21 result in Chicago — his best result thus far — perhaps Chacarra is finally beginning to settle his nerves and play in the same manner which he did in his amateur days.

“I’ve been struggling the first four weeks, just turned pro and nervous and all these guys, how good they are, and just trying to learn every week. I feel my game is getting better every week, and today I thought about what I was doing in college the last couple years when I had all the success, and I was just trying to play to not make bogeys,” said Chacarra. “I cannot play with that stride today, and it definitely worked; I didn’t make any bogeys. But like I say, these guys are really, really good. I’m trying to learn every week, so happy with my result, but still a long way to go.”

Other contenders

T4. Marc Leishman, Ian Poulter (-6)

T6. Sihwan Kim, Jediah Morgan, Brooks Koepka, Harold Varner III, Kevin Na (-5)

T11. Graeme McDowell, Patrick Reed, Sergio Garcia (-4)

The three betting favorites are nowhere to be found in the top 20 of the leaderboard, giving way to a potential surprise winner in Bangkok. Johnson, Cameron Smith and Joaquin Niemann all struggled in the first round and are unlikely to seriously threaten without a massive effort on Day 2.

Poulter is a surprising name to find only one stroke off the lead. The Englishman is not necessarily the longest player in the world, and he has not played his best golf in recent months. His last top-10 finish came in January on the DP World Tour, but he may have found something in Bangkok and is a player to keep an eye on over the final 36 holes.

The elephant in the room

The Official World Golf Rankings are on the minds of players as the ruling committee reviews the merits of LIV Golf Bangkok from a world ranking points perspective. Whether it decides to award points retroactively through the MENA Tour remains to be seen, but that did not stop some players from letting their opinions known.

“They’re delaying the inevitable,” said Bryson DeChambeau. “We’ve hit every mark in their criteria, so for us not to get points is kind of crazy with having the top — at least I believe we have the top players in the world.

“When they keep holding it back, they’re going to just keep playing a waiting game where we’re going to keep dropping down in the rankings to where our points won’t ever matter,” DeChambeau continued. “That’s what they’re trying to accomplish, and I hope that people can see right through that rather than believe the lies that they’ve been told. From my perspective, I think we deserve points.”

Team leaderboard

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NAPA, Calif. (AP) — Max Homa moved into position to defend his title at the Fortinet Championship, shooting a 5-under 67 on Friday to share the early 36-hole lead with Danny Willett at the PGA Tour’s season opener.

Homa, a two-time winner last season and a captain’s pick for next week’s Presidents Cup, had an eagle, four birdies and a bogey — his first of the week — for a two-day total of 12-under 132 at Silverado Resort & Spa.

“The course fits my eyes,” Homa said. “I hit a lot of wedges today and I’ve been hitting the wedges really well, so when I get a lot of wedges from fairways like these, I feel like I can attack the pins.”

The four-time PGA Tour winner played collegiately at California.

“I’ve got a great support system here,” said Homa, who won the 2013 NCAA individual title. “I’ve got friends and family up here and a bunch of, you know, people who appreciate I went to school up here.”

Willett, winless in the United States since his triumph at the Masters in 2016, shot a bogey-free 64. The English player kept his PGA Tour card for this season because of players defecting to the Saudi-funded LIV Golf series.

“Yeah, we kind of got handed a lifeline with the guys leaving, which was nice,” Willett said. “We kind of had to reassess things and decided we’d press on and play a little bit more this fall over here and really try to get some points up early.”

Willett has eight titles on the European tour, most recently last October at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland.

He had eight birdies in his second round and is bogey-free for the week.

“You know, the rough is hit and miss and with the greens being firm as they are. To go bogey-free is really good,” said Willett, who has only six top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour since winning his lone major. “The field game is pretty sharp, the short game’s pretty sharp.”

First-round leader Justin Lower was two shots back after a 71. His best finish in 28 previous PGA Tour events dating to 2013 was a tie for eighth.

“It’s always hard to follow up a very low round with another good round or even lower,” Lower said. “But I will take one under today. Could it have been better? Yes, but it definitely could have been worse as well.”

Jason Day, Harris English, Charley Hoffman and Webb Simpson were among the players who missed the cut.

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