KAPALUA, Hawaii — Hideki Matsuyama and Collin Morikawa put on a stripe show at Kapalua on Saturday, shooting an 11-under 62 at fragile Kapalua. Making the Sentinel a two-man show in the PGA Tour opener.
Matsuyama made an eagle not far from the 18th green and had a chance to tie the course record. He made two putts for birdie, maintaining a one-shot lead over Morikawa that he had started the day.
Morikawa made a 4-foot birdie putt on the par-5 final hole for a 62. Made a 25-foot eagle putt on the fifth hole. Excellent shooting ability.
Matsuyama caught him on the next hole and they were locked in a stalemate the rest of the way.
Matsuyama’s 11 birdies were his most in a single round on the PGA Tour. He shot 27-under 192, a 54-hole record at Kapalua Plantation Course.
It was reminiscent of 2022, when Cameron Smith set a tournament record and a PGA Tour record with a 34-under 258. Not much different.
There is almost no wind on the west side of Maui, and the Plantation Course is built to handle strong winds from all directions. It became target practice for the best players in the world, especially on a course with the widest fairways on the PGA Tour.
Three years ago, Smith was tied for the lead with Jon Rahm, five strokes ahead of everyone else. Matsuyama leads Morikawa. Thomas Detry shot 197, 22 under, ahead of Sungjae Im, who also shot 62.
The average score was 67.49, another record since the event moved to Kapalua in 1999.
Detry shot a 65 and lost.
“I shot 8 under today, but I didn’t really feel like I was 8 under,” he said. “At other courses, when you shoot 8 under, you really feel like, ‘Oh, yeah, I played unreal golf here.’ I just felt like I played some really consistent golf. golf ball.
Matsuyama and Morikawa kept making birdies and pulling away. What separated them was the par-4 14th, where Matsuyama chipped to 3 feet for birdie, while Morikawa drove into the bunker and blasted to 10 feet, missing the birdie putt.
On No. 16, Morikawa hit a wedge that was 20 inches from the hole cup. Matsuyama followed up with a wedge shot to the back of the green, spinning just enough to follow the grain and slope to 8 inches.
Just like that all day long, and one more round.
