Palm Harbour (Florida), March 20 – Aaron Rai began the week with a round of 3-under 68, placing him 7th on the leaderboard at the Valspar Championship. He was tied with nine other players.
Meanwhile, Sahith Theegala had a difficult start to the week, shooting 6-over 77 in the first round. This puts him 128th, with a significant amount of ground to make up if he hopes to qualify for the final round.
Rai started the day with a birdie, but then dropped to 1-over par by the turn of the round due to two bogeys on the sixth and seventh holes.
On the back nine, Rai had three consecutive birdies on the 10th, 11th, and 12th holes, before making another late birdie on the 17th hole to close the day with a score of 2-under 68. Rai is looking to rebound after a disappointing performance at the Players Championship last week.
Theegala made an early double bogey on the second hole, followed by five more bogeys in his first round. The birdie on the 14th hole was the only positive aspect of an otherwise difficult round.
Sungjae Im leads the field after carding 7-under 64, despite two late bogeys. The South Korean, who is returning from a wrist injury, is playing only his third event this year and has yet to qualify for the final round. The first round included six birdies, two eagles, and three bogeys.
Im found his rhythm with the putter, making long putts of 18ft and 35ft to make the two eagles respectively.
Brandt Snedeker, the captain of the US team for the Presidents Cup, is in second place. Snedeker fired his first bogey-free round in 14 years, placing him one stroke behind the leader. The 45-year-old carded a round of 6-under 65, which included six birdies.