Lexi holds her own, 1 over par as play suspended

LAS VEGAS — Lexi Thompson put on an impressive performance during the Shriners Children’s Open, despite a challenging round. She was unable to finish due to darkness, but her ability to hold her own was evident.

Setting the pace was Beau Hossler, who matched his career low on the PGA Tour with a remarkable 9-under 62. However, not without a little adventure, as his tee shot on the par-3 17th found the water on the left.

Thompson, the main attraction of this FedExCup Fall event, became the seventh woman to compete in a PGA Tour event in the past five years. She was 1 over par through 16 holes, but made the decision to mark her ball and finish the first round in the morning.

Thompson stated, “I played decent. I had one bad hole and a few iffy shots. But it’s golf; it was kind of expected.”

Thompson managed to take advantage of two par-5 holes, securing birdies on both, and even got a bonus birdie putt from inside 25 feet on the second hole to at least get into the red numbers. However, out of her 17 holes, she only had five opportunities within 20 feet.

It appeared that her round might spiral out of control on the front nine. She was even par when she fell short of the green on the par-4 seventh, leaving her with a 12-foot putt for par. Unfortunately, she ran it about 4 feet by and missed it, resulting in a double bogey.

Highlights: Thompson, Shriners Open, Round 1

Lexi Thompson became the seventh woman to play in a PGA Tour event at the Shriners Children’s Open. Watch her highlights from Round 1 in Las Vegas.

But Thompson didn’t let that setback ruin her performance. She had no more bogeys for the rest of the round, although her birdie opportunities were limited. She missed an 8-foot putt on the 12th and fell short on an 8-foot putt on the par-5 16th.

By the time play was suspended due to darkness, Thompson found herself in a tie for 76th place.

Fortunately for Thompson, she had a favorable draw despite playing later in the day. The start of the round was met with strong winds and chilly temperatures, but conditions improved in the afternoon, making the TPC Summerlin course more manageable.

In the morning, J.T. Poston had an impressive 63 in the tough conditions. In the afternoon, Hossler, who previously recorded a 62 in the final round of the 3M Open this year, looked particularly sharp. He missed only two greens and made the most of his opportunities.

Hossler stated, “Every part of my game felt good. To shoot that low, you’ve got to have looks. Some fairly stress-free birdies are nice.”

Hossler’s only real mistake didn’t faze him much. The pin placement on the 17th was challenging, with a severe slope down towards the water. After finding the hazard with his tee shot, Hossler was able to drop near the green and successfully made an up-and-down for a bogey. He then finished with a short birdie putt on the 18th for his outstanding score.

Other notable performances included a 63 by Cameron Champ in the afternoon, as well as scores of 64 by Davis Thompson and Lanto Griffin. Overall, ten players finished the day at 66 or better, showcasing the low-scoring nature of the course.

As Thompson prepares for the next day, she faces the challenge of completing her first round, with a putt on the 17th green, before moving on to the 18th hole and starting her second round.

In the past 70 years, the closest a woman has come to making the cut in a PGA Tour event was Michelle Wie. She missed the cut by only one stroke at the Sony Open in 2004 when she was just 14 years old.

Thompson brought a white golf bag to the tournament, adorned with messages written by children from the Shriners Children’s Hospital. The sponsor exemption for Thompson came together in the last two weeks, and she hopes to inspire children and support the incredible work done by the Shriners.

Thompson expressed her gratitude, saying, “Shriners does amazing things for these kids, so I’m happy to be out here and supporting them in any way I can.”