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The Clemson product had one bogey (on the par-4
ninth hole) but birdied his last two holes to finish one stroke
ahead of Canada's Mackenzie Hughes (64).
"I made a couple putts that I probably shouldn't have, but I
also hit it pretty nice," Bridgeman said. "Hit my driver well,
and all around it was a good round. I had really one bad swing
that I made a bogey on 9, but other than that I'm pretty
confident that I can play another good round tomorrow."
Hughes collected seven birdies to finish one shot ahead of
Patrick Rodgers, Andrew Novak and France's Martin Trainer.
"It was a great day," said Hughes, who recorded his best
opening-round score since a 63 at the 2021 RSM Classic. "I felt
like I was maybe a tad bit off early with my swing and kind of
-- made a nice up-and-down to keep my round going early. Kind of
found a bit of a rhythm with my swing kind of seven, eight holes
in and started to swing it a little better, and the putter was
cooperating nicely today. It was a fun day on the greens."
Sahith Theegala, the event's highest ranked player in the FedEx
Cup standings at No. 7 and world rankings at No. 11, and seven
others shot a first-round 66 and are three shots off the pace.
"It's kind of like a revenge week for me. I just wanted to come
back and see what I can do on the golf course that's beat me up
pretty bad the last three years," said Theegala, who played a
bogey-free round after missing the cut in three previous 3M Open
starts (2020, 2022 and 2023).
Tony Finau (67), who won the 3M Open in 2022, is among a large
contingent four shots back.
Nick Dunlap, who won last week at the Barracuda Championship to
become the first player to win a PGA Tour event as an amateur
and a professional in the same season, finished at an even-par
71.
--Field Level Media [© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
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