BMW Championship Round 1: Five-Way Tie at Bellerive as U.S. Open Champions Crowd the Top

Bellerive handed out a lot of 64s on Thursday, and four of them went to men who already own a U.S. Open trophy.

Rory McIlroy, Gary Woodland, Wyndham Clark and J.J. Spaun, all national open champions, shared the first-round lead at the BMW Championship at 6-under 64 with Chris Gotterup, who crashed the club as one of the last players to finish. Matt Fitzpatrick and Ryo Hisatsune sit one back at 65. Ludvig Åberg, Alex Fitzpatrick, Jacob Bridgeman and Michael Thorbjornsen are two behind at 66. Soft conditions at Bellerive, back on the schedule for the first time since the 2018 PGA Championship, made a bunched board almost inevitable.

Asked about five of the seven U.S. Open champions in the field shooting 65 or better, Clark kept it short. "Coincidence," Clark said.

McIlroy Finds Something

Last week in Memphis, McIlroy did not break par in any of his four rounds, the kind of week that had not happened to him in more than five years. He went home to Florida, worked through swing changes with coach Michael Bannon, and came to St. Louis with very little proof that any of it was working. Thursday gave him some.

His 64 was bogey-free, and it got better as it went. McIlroy turned in 33 and came home in 31, birdieing four of his last six holes. He rolled in a 7-footer at the par-3 13th, two-putted for birdie at the par-5 17th and closed with a right-to-left 10-footer at the last.

"It's my style of golf course. I do well on these golf courses," McIlroy said, per Field Level Media. He was not ready to call the fix finished, though. "It's certainly a work in progress. Days like this are encouraging, obviously. There's still a lot of work to be done."

Woodland's Day Close to Home

The best story on the board belongs to Woodland. Three years removed from brain surgery, still managing the after-effects, Woodland is playing about three and a half hours from his home area of Topeka, Kansas.

His card had a bit of everything. Four birdies on the front nine. A hole-out eagle with a sand wedge at the 11th. A 2-iron from 286 yards into the par-5 17th that set up a birdie and got him to 7 under. Then came his only bogey of the day at 18, which dropped him back into the pack.

The stakes for Woodland are real. He started the week 31st in the FedExCup standings, one spot outside the top 30 who move on to the TOUR Championship at East Lake. Getting there would also lock up starts in next year's majors.

"I can promise you East Lake wasn't on my mind to start the year," Woodland said, per the AP. On the hard days, Woodland explained, there is a simple ritual. "When I'm struggling I put my hand on my heart to just remind myself that I'm alive."

Clark Closes Fast, Spaun Gives One Back

Clark's 64 was quieter than McIlroy's but just as clean. The reigning U.S. Open champion played bogey-free, with the only real scare coming at the 10th, where he had to bury an 18-foot putt to save par. After that he caught fire, birdieing five of his final six holes to sprint into the share. He arrived this week fifth in the FedExCup standings, already safe for Atlanta, which means every shot here is about bigger things: a third win this season after THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson and his U.S. Open title at Shinnecock Hills.

Spaun had the round that got away, just a little. Back with the putter from his U.S. Open win at Oakmont, Spaun made seven birdies through 17 holes and stood alone at 7 under before a bogey at the last pulled him back to 64. Gotterup, meanwhile, made three birdies on each nine and slid into the tie late in the afternoon.

Scheffler Under the Weather

The man who owns these playoffs so far had a rough Thursday. Scottie Scheffler won the postseason opener in Memphis by eight shots on Sunday and showed up at Bellerive sick. His voice was hoarse after a 2-over 72, his highest opening round since the U.S. Open in June, and he headed for the locker room without stopping to talk.

Scheffler is tied for 44th in the 50-man field, eight shots back. There is no cut this week, and as the FedExCup leader, Scheffler is in no danger of missing East Lake. He is also the defending champion here, having won the 2025 BMW Championship at Caves Valley by erasing a four-shot deficit. Still, eight shots is a long way to climb when you feel lousy.

The Bubble Is Already Talking

Behind the leaders, the top 30 math is starting to hum. Patrick Cantlay and Justin Thomas, 43rd and 44th in the standings, each opened with 67 and probably need a big week to see Atlanta. Thomas made no secret of how much it means.

"Because it's really hard to make it to Atlanta. It's always been hard, but I feel like it's even harder," Thomas said, per Field Level Media.

Where It Stands

Five players at 6 under, two at 5 under, four at 4 under and a pack at 3 under. Nobody has separated, and on a course that played this gettable, nobody is likely to on Friday either. The real question is which of the U.S. Open champions on top can keep the momentum, and whether Woodland can turn an emotional opening day into a ticket to East Lake.

Full scoring is on the official PGA TOUR leaderboard (opens in a new tab), and the TOUR's Round 1 recap (opens in a new tab) has more.

Sources: PGA TOUR (Round 1 recap and leaderboard), AP, Field Level Media, Golf Today. More golf coverage on Undrafted.

Photo: PGA TOUR.