HONOLULU (AP) — The Sony Open is the PGA Tour stop where introductions are in order, and Paul Peterson made quite the first impression. He opened with a 6-under 64 and shared the lead with five others Thursday on a pleasant day at Waialae.
Harry Hall, Denny McCarthy and Eric Cole, all of whom got an early start in Hawaii last week at Kapalua, also opened at 64 along with Adam Schenk.
Tom Hoge, who tied for eighth in Kapalua, had the only 64 in the afternoon in a round that featured two eagles. The second one Hoge described as a gift — an 8-iron out of the rough from 189 yards that hit the pin and dropped into the cup.
“I was just hoping it would get down before it got over the back of the green,” he said.
Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., was one stroke back of the lead with an opening 65.
Nick Taylor, also of Abbotsford, hit a 66 while Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., and Ben Silverman, of Thornhill, Ont., opened with a 69.
Hideki Matsuyama, coming off a record score to par at Kapalua, birdied two of his last three holes for a 67. He is trying to become the third player to sweep the Hawaii swing.
Peterson is no ordinary rookie.
The lefty from Oregon State has five passport books with stamps from some 44 countries. He has held cards from six tours around the world, which doesn’t include the mini-tours in Arizona and the Dakotas when he was just starting out.
“Whether I feel like a rookie, no,” Peterson said. “I’ve traveled a lot. I’ve seen a lot of golf in a lot of places. I feel like all of that’s helped prepare me to get here. … Do I wish I was over here a little bit earlier? Yeah. But do I regret any experiences I’ve had along the way? No.”
The Sony Open is the first full-field tournament of the year on the PGA Tour, attracting a big batch of rookies and graduates from the Korn Ferry Tour.
Peterson finally made his way back home by finishing among the top 30 on the Korn Ferry Tour, which included a victory in Tennessee. He felt good all week, and had such a good range session Tuesday he wanted the tournament to start a day early.
The wait didn’t hurt him. He was motoring along with three birdies in eight holes when he belted his 7-wood into a soft, tropical breeze on the par-5 ninth hole to 5 feet for eagle. With birdies and two of the next three holes — six straight 3s on his card — he was the player to reach 7 under.
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