Report by Anand Datla
August 28, 2015: After making an impactful effort at the PGA Championships, Tony Finau continued to make the most of his good form by shooting a 65 in the first round of The Barclays, that marks the start of the FedExCup Playoffs. Bubba Watson, Spencer Levin and Camilo Villegas were the other three men sharing the lead.
Perhaps the end of the grand slam circuit robbed Jordan Spieth of some intensity. He suffered the worst round of golf that came from his eloquent bag since the 75 at The Players Championship. He found himself in the water off the tee, three putted twice over in a forgettable four over 74.
Lying a distant nine shots behind the leading group, he will have plenty to do on Friday to ensure that his first tournament as the world No.1 does not turn into a painful memory.
“Just lost a little bit of focus,” Spieth said. “All in all, I’m just going to take today as a fluke round. I still believe I’m playing well. It just happened to be an off day on a day where it counted.”
There is something about pressure that seems to get Villegas going. After making the playoffs with an edgy performance at the Wyndham Championship last week, he backed it up with a solid round at the Plainfield Country Club.
“Last week was an important week,” said Villegas, who is No. 123. “It hasn’t been the best of years, and just to be able to sneak in here and give myself a chance. I get off to a good start, and three more rounds to go and keep it going.”
Levin too is in a league not too distant from Villegas. He rode on a remarkable 63 in the final round of Wyndham to secure the right to play this week. “This is a nice stress to have,” he said. “I’m happy with where I am right now and who knows? Maybe I can keep it going.”
Jason Day was playing in the marquee group – Spieth and Watson for company. Day settled for a 68, underlining the fact that the PGA Championship victory hasn’t taken away the edge off his game. The Aussie had Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler signing on the same number.
Finau had a uniquely undulating start to his day. He followed up a hat-trick of birdies at the start with three straight bogeys to drop back to even par. But he took a brief respite on the seventh hole, before surging ahead again with three straight birdies. “So No. 9 today with that pin just on top of the ridge, if you draw a decent lie in the rough, it’s almost easier to just run something up instead of worrying about the spin if you’re hitting from the fairway,” Finau said.
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