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Two-time major winner Xander Schauffele called himself an “idiot” after making a quadruple-bogey eight on an unforgettable opening day at the PGA Tour’s Zozo Championship in Japan on Thursday.
Schauffele’s triple-over 73 left him 10 strokes behind first-round leader, American Taylor Moore, who made an eagle at the 18th en route to a 63.
2024 US PGA and British Open champion Schauffele discovered his wayward tee shot on the par-four ninth at Narashino Country Club had gotten stuck among tree roots.
He tried to kick the ball twice but failed to dislodge it and looked ready to give it a third hit before shaking his head, laughing and opting to take a penalty for an unplayable lie.
“I almost wanted to take a photo of it, how bad it was,” the 30-year-old American said.
“The fact that I think I can do anything has definitely put me in a hole,” he said.
“I should have taken an unplayable, but I was an idiot and tried to hit him. Then I was stubborn and tried to hit him again, then I ended up taking an unplayable .”
The eight was the only blemish on an otherwise uneventful three-way card that featured one birdie and 16 pars.
“Overall, the stress was pretty low for most of the day,” he said after finishing tied for 70th.
“Like 85 percent of the day wasn’t very stressful.”
Schauffele wasn’t the only big name to struggle on a difficult day in Chiba, near Tokyo.
Defending champion Collin Morikawa opened with a birdie three, but a bogey on the fourth hole and a double bogey two holes later on the par-five sixth set him back before recovering with three more birdies for a par 69. a sub.
“I just went through a little lull, missed some numbers, started missing some fairways,” Morikawa said.
“Here, if you miss the fairways, it’s just a little harder and you just can’t get anywhere near the pins.”
Japanese Olympic bronze medalist and home crowd favorite Hideki Matsuyama made five bogeys and four birdies in a reverse 71.
Moore’s 63 gave him the solo lead, one shot ahead of Americans Max Greyserman and Eric Cole and Colombian Nico Echavarria who all had 64s.
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