Five of the biggest stars in the PGA Championship, including Bryson DeChambeau, were seen sharing the driving range at Quail Hollow after their opening rounds.
As expected, DeChambeau headed straight to hit some extra balls without even stopping by the locker room after leaving the 18th green and fulfilling some media duties. This is nothing out of the ordinary for him as he’s known for putting in additional work immediately after his rounds.
DeChambeau, who received a stern message from Rory McIlroy earlier in the week, was joined on the range by Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg. All of them were clearly looking to improve their games.
Despite a disastrous start, Thomas managed to claw his way back into contention, finishing +2 and still hopeful.
Aaron Rai, who had an excellent day finishing tied-fourth with a -4 score of 67, was also spotted leaving the range as DeChambeau arrived for some practice. DeChambeau finished even par, making a birdie after nearly hitting a hole-in-one on 17 only to be set back by a bogey on 18.
DeChambeau was seen hitting his irons with remarkable consistency. Each shot ranged between 185 and 190 yards, suggesting he was using a nine iron, based on his publicly known stock yardages.
Spieth, on the other hand, who ended up +5 after bogeys on the 16th and 18th holes, was seen repeatedly practising with his driver in a bid to improve his tee shots. With just 42.86% accuracy from his driver, he was among the worst performers on the opening day.
This setback is a significant blow to his aspirations of securing a career grand slam, a feat that has eluded him so far due to Rory McIlroy’s dominance this week.
As they left the range, Aberg and Thomas took the time to sign autographs for some eager young fans, while Hovland, DeChambeau and Spieth continued their practice sessions.
Hovland was grouped with DeChambeau and Gary Woodland, the latter opting not to join them on the range immediately after the 18th green. Hovland outperformed the rest, finishing -2 after birdies on the 15th and 16th holes, the latter achieved through a chip-in.
However, like DeChambeau, he made a bogey on the final hole, ending an otherwise promising round on a disappointing note. Their group will commence Round 2 at 8:22 am local time on the tenth tee.