Two players with a positive history at PGA National’s Champions Course charged to the first-round lead at the Honda Classic on Thursday.
Wesley Bryan, who competed at the course in the Golf Channel’s “Big Break: The Palm Beaches’’ in 2014, is tied for the lead at 6-under par with Cody Gribble, who like Bryan, competed in the Web.com Tour’s Qualifying School on the course.
Bryan’s course knowledge helped him shoot 64 to share the lead with fellow rookie Gribble, who won this season’s Sanderson Farms Championship.
“This is a place that I’m comfortable at, and a golf course I know,” said Bryan, who attended the same South Carolina high school as Dustin Johnson, the new world No. 1 ranked player after he won last week at Riviera. Bryan finished tied for fourth behind Johnson.
Fourteen months ago, both Bryan and Gribble played in the Web.com Tour Q-School. Bryan finished ninth at PGA National that week and went on to become Web.com Tour’s Player of the Year after winning three times in 2016.
Gribble, who finished eighth at the Web.com Tour Q-School that week, hit all 18 greens in regulation Thursday.
“It’s a hell of a start,’’ he said. “I played great, putted well. Like to hit more fairways tomorrow with driver but my irons were great. Been a while since I’ve seen iron shots come off the clubface the way they did today. Great step in the right direction.’’
Gribble and Bryan are trailed by Martin Kaymer and Anirban Lahiri at 5-under and seven players at 4-under, including Rickie Fowler, Ian Poulter, Ben Crane and Ryan Palmer.
Poulter, who’s trying to regain his playing status on the PGA Tour after being out nearly six months with an injury, got off to a strong start, shooting a 4-under-par 66. He has six tournaments in which to qualify for the rest of the season.
“I’m on borrowed time,’’ Poulter said. “I need to perform well. A win would be nice. I have to think that I’ve got a chance, I really do. The situation I’m in, I have to be aggressive but I’ve got to be careful. I can’t make many mistakes. I’m not thinking about anything else apart from just play solid golf.’’