Retief Goosen of South Africa drained his seventh birdie of the day at the 18th hole to take the first-round lead at the Dominion Energy Charity Classic on Friday in Richmond, Va.
Goosen heads to the weekend with a one-stroke lead over five players following his 6-under-par 66 at the Country Club of Virginia. Stewart Cink, Steve Flesch, Paul Goydos, Heath Slocum and Australian Greg Chalmers all shot 5-under 67.
The tournament is the first leg of the Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs. The top two players in the points race, South African Ernie Els and Australian Steven Alker, both opened with a 1-under 71.
Goosen, meanwhile, began the week in 18th place and would rocket into sixth with a victory. Only the top 54 players after this event qualify for next week’s tournament.
Goosen, 55, holed birdies at five of his first seven holes before a bogey at the par-5 ninth and a birdie at No. 11. Then he went quiet till the par-5 18th, where his medium-length birdie putt snaked into the cup.
“Today was a few disappointing ones on the back nine, but yeah, the one on 18 is a bonus,” Goosen said. “Yeah, the putter helped me out today, I made a lot of good putts, especially in the first few holes. Had to scramble here and there, but yeah, it’s nice to get a good round under the belt for a change.”
Cink, 51, snagged his first win on the PGA Tour Champions in August and entered the week No. 14 in the Schwab Cup race. This marks his first time playing a playoff event on the 50-and-older circuit.
“It’s not easy. The players out here, they’re in the fields for a reason,” Cink said. “You have to produce high quality golf for quite a long time in your career to be able to make it into these fields and have a career on PGA Tour Champions. … They don’t forget how to close the door when they get in the hunt. They don’t forget how to close the door on a good round and finish it off.”
Goydos was the only player in the tie for second to shoot a bogey-free round.
Tim Petrovic is alone in seventh at 4-under 68.
–Field Level Media
