FedEx St. Jude Championship Round 1: Akshay Bhatia's Career-Best 62 Sets the Pace

Akshay Bhatia walked into the FedExCup Playoffs carrying the weight of the most frustrating season of his young career. He walked off TPC Southwind on Thursday with the lowest round of his PGA TOUR life and the lead in Memphis.

Bhatia closed eagle, birdie, birdie to shoot 8-under 62 in the opening round of the FedEx St. Jude Championship, one clear of Tommy Fleetwood (63). Justin Rose, Bud Cauley and Harry Hall are two back at 64, Si Woo Kim sits alone at 65, and a crowd at 66 includes Collin Morikawa, Russell Henley, Ben Griffin, Rickie Fowler and Maverick McNealy. Scottie Scheffler, the world No. 1, opened with 67 and is five behind.

Four Holes, Four Under

For most of the afternoon, Bhatia's round looked good rather than historic. He piled up four birdies on the front nine, gave one back with a bogey at the par-4 12th, and then the finish arrived all at once. At the par-5 16th he made eagle. At 17 he rolled in a birdie putt of about 25 feet. At 18 he stuck a short iron to roughly 2 feet and tapped in. That is 4 under over his final four holes, and it turned a nice day into a career low.

Bhatia looked loose doing it. "I felt pretty relaxed, and I'm just not trying to force anything," Bhatia said, per the AP. He added: "It's OK to get mad at golf shots but not at yourself."

That is not small talk coming from Bhatia right now. Bhatia had won and finished runner-up in each of the previous two seasons, but per the PGA TOUR he has not posted a top 10 since a third-place finish at THE PLAYERS in March. A cracked driver at Augusta sent him on a long search for a replacement, and he has called this the toughest year of his career. He came into Memphis at No. 45 in the FedExCup, inside the line but nowhere near safe. One round does not fix a season, but it changes the math.

Fleetwood Fills the Fairways

If Bhatia's round was a late explosion, Fleetwood's was a slow squeeze. The Englishman was even par through seven holes, per Field Level Media, then played his last 11 in 7 under, finishing with four straight birdies.

The foundation was the driver. Fleetwood hit 13 of 14 fairways, and the one he missed, at the ninth, he turned into a birdie anyway by holing out from a bunker. TPC Southwind has 18 new greens and thicker rough this year, and Fleetwood said it is only a second-shot golf course if you are in the fairway.

"I hit the ball so well off the tee that I was always giving myself an opportunity," Fleetwood said, per the AP.

Fleetwood started the week ninth in the standings and is close to locked into East Lake. He is also still chasing his first PGA TOUR win, the storyline that follows him into every weekend.

The 64s, and a Splash at the Last

Rose made seven birdies against one bogey, per Field Level Media. Hall, playing alongside Bhatia, matched the leader with a bogey-free card until the final two holes opened a gap.

Cauley's 64 stung a little. Cauley birdied 10, 12, 15, 16 and 17 to get to 7 under, then found the water at 18 and made bogey. The round still matters plenty for a player who started the week at No. 53.

Scheffler Settles for Solid

Scheffler's first round since winning The Open, his second major of the year, was a very Scheffler 67. He converted four birdies from a long list of chances and extended his streak of rounds in the 60s to 10. At the par-5 16th he drove into the rough and then came up in a bunker about 100 yards short, wasting a birdie hole. At the last he three-putted from about 70 feet for bogey.

"Today was a good day. I did some solid stuff," Scheffler said, per the AP.

Five shots is a big number against most players. Against this version of Scheffler, it feels like Thursday noise.

Life on the Bubble

The top 70 in the standings made it to Memphis. Only the top 50 move on to the BMW Championship at Caves Valley next week, and those 50 also lock in spots in next season's Signature Events. The top 30 after that get to East Lake.

Fowler started at No. 64, and a 66 projects Fowler inside the top 50. Kim, who began at No. 46, shot 65 and was honest about the situation, calling it "kind of like dicey spot right now," per the AP. Wyndham Clark began the week at 49th and opened with 67.

Jordan Spieth had the most stressful 69 in the field. Spieth started at No. 48, slid outside the top 50 during the round, then rallied on the back nine to end the day projected at exactly No. 50. Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley shot 72, and Rory McIlroy, No. 2 in the standings, skipped the event.

Friday's Questions

Friday brings a different test. Bhatia has to follow a career low with a round that keeps him in front, Fleetwood has to keep driving it like a machine, and Scheffler has 36 holes to erase five shots. For everyone hovering around No. 50, every putt from here on carries a little extra weight.

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 details.

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

Photo: PGA TOUR.