Day 1: Mike Weir, Zac Blair Lead Way For Utah Locals At The Black Desert Championship
Oct 10, 2024, 10:37 PM | Updated: Oct 11, 2024, 12:10 pm
Mike Weir tees off on the 11th hole on Thursday at the Black Desert Championship in St. George.
ST. GEORGE, UTAH- The PGA officially made its return to the state of Utah on Thursday morning. Some Utah locals and other recognizable names made their marks as they swung into the first round of the Black Desert Championship. The event in St. George marks the first time we have seen a tour stop in the Beehive State since the Utah Open Invitational in 1963.
Black Desert views 🤩 pic.twitter.com/zNEtEwVb71
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 11, 2024
The Black Desert Golf Course, which opened in May of 2023 and is playing host to the Black Desert Championship, showed off Utah’s beautiful and diverse landscape, giving a stunning backdrop to the first of what PGA fans in Utah hope is many events to be hosted at the property for the foreseeable future.
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Day One At The Black Desert Championship
The field consisted of 132 golfers who split into threesomes and participated in a tandem start, with half the field teeing off from 1 and the other half teeing off from 10. The first group began play at 7:40 a.m. MT, with rounds being played until dark, forcing seven groups to conclude their last few holes on Friday morning.
The first round of the Black Desert Championship was suspended due to darkness at 7:04 p.m. MT.
The first round will resume at 8:00 a.m., with the second round to begin as scheduled.
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) October 11, 2024
It didn’t take long for the gallery at Balck Desert to see their first ace as Ben Kohles sunk his first career hole-in-one on the 151-yard 9th hole.
151 yards ➡️ IN!
One of the first highlights from @BDChampionship is the event's first-ever ace AND first-career ace from @Ben_Kohles!
(Presented by @CocaCola) pic.twitter.com/QQpraczNEl
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 10, 2024
The low score on the day came from Canadian Adam Svensson who shot a 60, 11 under par. His scorecard on Thursday earned him his best-ever score, and with it coming in the inaugural round of the Black Desert Championship, a tournament record as well. Svensson is seeking his second win on tour, and his first since November 2022.
✅ New career low
✅ New tournament record@AdamSvensson59 goes low to lead by two @BDChampionship! pic.twitter.com/gFPaOOfU21— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 11, 2024
The top of the leaderboard consists of Adam Svensson at -11, Henrik Norlander and Matt McCarty tied at -9, and Kevin Streelman and Sam Ryder tied at -7. Underneath the five in front are ten players tied at -6 with continued congestion throughout the standings. Expect the field to loosen up and separate as play continues into the weekend.
Locals At Day One Of The Black Desert Championship
The pre-cut field at the Black Desert Championship features nine golfers with ties to the state of Utah.
Mike Weir, -3, T42
The former BYU Cougar was off to a hot start as he birdied six of the first nine holes, sitting at -6 at the turn. The back nine presented some problems for Weir, as he bogeyed the 11th and 12th holes, and then twice more before finishing his round. A birdie on the 18th allowed Mike to finish off day one on a positive note. Weir is currently tied with twenty other golfers at -3.
Zac Blair, -3, T42
Zac Blair graduated from Fremont High School in Ogden and then attended BYU from 2009-2013, and now currently resides in St. George. Zac’s round started a bit rocky with a bogey on the 3rd, but he righted the ship with five birdies in the next 11 holes. Blair sputtered in the last few holes with bogeys on 16 and 17. Blair sits alongside Mike Weir in the traffic jam at -3.
Kihei Akina, -2, T62
Akina is currently a senior at Lone Peak High School and has committed to BYU to continue his golf career. He sits in the top 200 among high school golfers across the nation. Kihei made his PGA Tour debut on Thursday. After a single bogey on 2, Kihei continued a strong round stong with 12 pars and three birdies. Akina is currently waiting to tee off on 17 after play was suspended due to darkness. Akina is bunched up with 21 other players at -2.
Patrick Fishburn, E, T100
Patrick Fishburn attended BYU between 2011 and 2018 before turning pro. Last year on tour, Fishburn had four top-10 finishes and is still seeking his first win on tour. The Ogden resident began with no hiccups, starting his round with seven pars and a birdie, closing out the front nine with a bogey. The second half of his round, was more up and down, with two birdies, four pars, and two bogeys. Ultimately, Patrick finished his round at even par. Fishburn will need a big second round on day two to make the cut.
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Bowen Mauss, +2, T116
Currently a senior at Corner Canyon High School, Mauss made his first PGA Tour start on Thursday. Bowen is currently ranked 111th nationally and is committed to Arizona State University. Mauss’ round was a rollercoaster that ultimately ended up going downhill on the back nine. He matched birdies and bogeys on the front nine with two each, coming into the turn at even par. Bown then bogeyed three of the next eight holes before wrapping up his round with a birdie on 18. Only four other golfers are tied with Mauss at +2.
Peter Kuest, +3, T121
The former BYU Cougar and current American Fork resident entered the week with hopes of capturing his first win on tour following two top-10 finishes last season. Kuest was -1 after nine with a birdie on the par-4 6th. Unfortunately, things unraveled after the turn as Peter bogeyed 9 and 11, adding a double-bogey on 17. Hopefully, Kuest can emulate more of his front-nine performance from Thursday and he makes a push toward the cut line.
Jay Don Blake,+3, T121
The Legend made his 500th career start on the PGA Tour in his hometown of St. George. Blake received a loud ovation from the supporters at Black Desert before teeing off. Jay Don bogeyed 4, 7, and eight before finally holing his first birdie on 10. Following his strong start to the back nine, Blake pared his next four holes before another bogey on 15. Jay Don still has two and a half holes to play from his first round since darkness forced the players off the course.
Zac Jones, +6, 127
Zac Jones attended Lone Peak High School and is currently a senior at BYU. Zac was also the Utah State Amateur champion in 2022. Things seemed to be doomed from the start for Jones and he started his round +3 through two holes with bogey and double-bogey. Zac continued to struggle with additional bogeys on 5, 7, and 12, and another double-bogey on 11. There were bright spots in Zac’s round with birdies on 9, 13, and 15. It will be a long shot for Jones to make the cut after tomorrow’s second round.
Dustin Volk, +9, 131
Currently the Davis County Director of Golf, Volk received an exemption to participate in the Black Desert Championship after winning his third Utah PGA Section Championship in September. Dustin’s round included four bogeys and three double-bogeys with a singular bright spot coming on a birdie on 14. Volk will wrap up his final three holes of the first round on Friday morning.
Round Two At The Black Desert Championship
Akina, Blake, Jones, and Volk will all continue their first rounds Friday morning at 7:40 a.m. MT with second-round play beginning at 8:00 a.m. MT. You can watch Friday’s play on ESPN+ from 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. MT and Golf Channel from 3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. MT.
Tee Times For Utah Locals
Mike Weir: 7:56 a.m. MT
Zac Blair, Patrick Fishburn: 8:07 a.m. MT
Kihei Akina: 9:13 a.m. MT
Jay Don Blake: 9:19 a.m. MT
Dustin Volk: 9:24 a.m. MT
Zac Jones: 9:35 a.m. MT
Bowen Mauss 2:09 p.m. MT
Peter Kuest: 2:25 p.m. MT
Groupings and starting times for the first two rounds of the Black Desert Championship pic.twitter.com/gOFGlFk8fx
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) October 8, 2024
