Pendrith rises up the leaderboard at Tour Championship
Published
Canadian Taylor Pendrith had a strong start to his first Tour Championship, finishing the day at 6-under at the East Lake Golf Course in Atlanta.
Pendrith is the lone Canadian in the field and began the day at 1-under after landing in the 25th spot in the FedExCup Standings.
The Richmond Hill, Ont. native began his day with a birdie before rattling off six straight pars. After landing a bogey on the eighth hole, Pendrith went on to birdie four of the next six holes to bring himself into contention.
He put the rest of the course on notice on the 18th hole, ending his day with an eagle on the par-5 and finished with a 66 and was five strokes back of the leader Scottie Scheffler when he finished his round.
Pendrith qualified for the Tour Championship after finishing 13th at the BMW Championship last week, which placing him within the top-30 of the standings. He also won his first PGA tournament of his career in May at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.
Here is a hole-by-hole look at Pendrith's opening round:
Leader: Scottie Scheffler, -13
Pendrith's Round 1 Score: -6, T10
Hole 1 (Par 4): Birdie (-2)
Hole 2 (Par 3): Par (-2)
Hole 3 (Par 4): Par (-2)
Hole 4 (Par 4): Par (-2)
Hole 5 (Par 4): Par (-2)
Hole 6 (Par 5): Par (-2)
Hole 7 (Par 4): Par (-2)
Hole 8 (Par 4): Bogey (-1)
Hole 9 (Par 3): Par (-1)
Hole 10 (Par 4): Birdie (-2)
Hole 11 (Par 3): Birdie (-3)
Hole 12 (Par 4): Birdie (-4)
Hole 13 (Par 4): Par (-4)
Hole 14 (Par 5): Birdie (-5)
Hole 15 (Par 3): Par (-5)
Hole 16 (Par 4): Par (-5)
Hole 17 (Par 4): Bogey (-4)
Hole 18 (Par 5): Eagle (-6)
Pendrith the Last Canadian Standing
Pendrith ended up as the lone Canadian to crack the top-30 in the FedEx Cup Standings and qualify for the Tour Championship.
The 33-year-old finished tied for 13th at the BMW Championship on Sunday, placing 25th in the standings, five spots within the top-30 cut line for the Tour Championship. Pendrith came into the 50-player BMW Championship tied for 27th.
Fellow Canadians Corey Conners and Adam Hadwin were unable to rise from the pack to qualify for the tournament.
Conners, 32, was ranked 33rd in the standings entering the BMW Championship. The Listowel, Ont. native was able to finish 4-under in a tie for 22nd place in last weekend's tournament but was unable to surpass Keegan Bradley, Adam Scott, and Tommy Fleetwood, who all made major jumps in the tournament.
Hadwin was a long shot to advance after starting the BMW Championship in 42nd place in the FedEx Cup Playoffs standings. The 36-year-old finished in a tie for 41st with a final score of 3-over, shooting even par on Sunday.
Pendrith is looking for one last strong performance to entice captain Mike Weir to pick him for the Presidents Cup roster next month.