NAPA, Calif. — David Lipsky shot a 7-under 65 Thursday at Silverado Country Club to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Procore Championship.
Unbeaten in 104 events since joining the PGA Tour in 2022, Lipsky birdied the first groups and had eight birdies and one bogey to start the FedEx Cup Fall Series on a beautiful course in the heart of Napa Valley wine country.
After missing the cut in her past three tournaments, Lipsky flew from Las Vegas to Arizona to meet with her college coach at Northwestern to regain her focus. He also spent time playing with some of Northwestern’s players, which helped him get comfortable.
“Being around those guys and seeing how they don’t care, not knowing what they’re going to do, it’s nice to see that,” Lipsky said. “I was almost overwhelmed by their youth.”
Patton Kizzire and Mark Hubbard were a stroke back. Kizzire started on the back nine and made a late run with three consecutive birdies to move into a tie for first. Boy No. 8 threw him back.
“There were a lot of good things today,” Kizzire said. “I stayed patient and just went through my routines and played well, one shot at a time. I’ve been working hard on my mental game and I think that allowed me to take a shower and regroup and keep playing.”
Mark Hubbard was 67 years old. He had nine birdies but went down with a bogey and a triple bogey on back-to-back holes.
Kevin Dougherty was also on the team with 67. He had two eagles and ended his afternoon with a 41-yarder on the 383-yard, par-4 18th.
Defending champion Sahith Theegala had to fight for most of his round of 69.
Wyndham Clark, who won the 2023 US Open and AT&T at Pebble Beach in February, had 70.
Max Homa shot 71. The tournament champion and two-time Presidents Cup captain in two weeks had two birdies and a bogey on the par-4 first.
Stewart Cink, the 2020 winner, also opened with a 71. He won the Ally Challenge last month for his first PGA Tour Champions title.
Three players from the President’s Cup International squad had mixed results. Min Woo Lee shot 68, Mackenzie Hughes 69 and Corey Conners 73. International team captain Mike Weir also had a 69.
Lipsky was a little shaky in the fairway for most of the afternoon but made up for it with solid iron play that left him in good shape on the green. He had one putt through 11 holes and was in the mood for a big day but left five putts short.
Lipsky’s only problem came on the par-4 ninth when his approach went into the bunker just shy of the green. He retreated gracefully with five birds on his nine-legged back. After missing a 19-foot birdie putt on No. 17, Lipsky finished his day with a 12-foot par putt.
That was a big change from last year when Lipsky finished tied for 30th in the Silverado while driving well but had inconsistent success on the greens.
“Sometimes you have to realize that golf can be fun, and I think I kind of forgot that as I was grinding,” Lipsky said. “You have to put things in perspective, take a step back. He did that and it seems to be paying off.”
Laird stayed close after starting the day with a bogey on the par-4 10th. The Scot got out of the sand well but pushed his par putt past the hole.
Homa continued to struggle and missed birdie putts on his last four holes.
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