Palm Beach Gardens (US), February 27 Indo-British Aaron Rai and Indo-Canadian Sudarshan Yellamaraju were tied for ninth place with a score of 68 (3 under) each in the first round of the Cognizant Classic on the PGA Tour here.
Rai had three birdies and no bogeys, while Yellamaraju had six birdies against one bogey and one double bogey.
Austin Smotherman shot a bogey-free 62 (9 under) to match his lowest round on the TOUR and holds the lead at the Cognizant Classic. He hit 10 of 14 fairways and 17 of 18 greens in regulation.
Smotherman, who secured his return to the PGA TOUR with a third-place finish on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, had nine birdies, which is his most in a single round on the TOUR. He had six consecutive birdies from the seventh to the 12th holes.
Nico Echavarria (63) was second with a bogey-free 63 (8 under). This season, he has had four missed cuts and one top-10 finish at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Daniel Berger (67), seeking his fourth top-five finish in his tenth start at this event, was tied for third place with Norway's Kristoffer Reitan, Pontus Nyholm, Jackson Suber, Kevin Roy, and Taylor Moore.
The 2019 Open champion, Shane Lowry, was tied for 35th, along with the defending champion, Joe Highsmith. Brooks Koepka, who has won five major championships, shot a 74 and is tied for 98th.
