Corey Shaun is already a DP World Tour member, thanks to a solo 14th in final-stage qualifying Nov. 8-13 in Spain.
The former UCLA player and Encinitas, Calif., resident now has a huge head start in adding a PGA Tour card to his wallet.
Shaun birdied five holes in a row during one stretch on Thursday at the TPC Sawgrass Dye’s Valley Course and went on to fire a 9-under-par 61 to break the course record and take a five-shot lead over Tour veteran Richy Werenski (66, Valley) in the PGA Tour Q-School, presented by Korn Ferry.
Shaun broke the Valley record of 62 set by Tommy Gainey in the 2014 Korn Ferry Tour Championship, tied Esteban Toledo’s 2017 record for lowest opening-round Q-School score and broke Toledo’s record for the biggest lead first-round.
Toledo shot 62 and led by four in the first round at the Whirlwind Golf Club Devil’s Claw Course in Chandler, Ariz. Tour records for final-stage qualifying go back to 1992.
PGA Tour Q-School second-round tee times
Players battle cold, windy start
It was the first chilly, windy day of a grueling week in which 171 players are battling for five PGA Tour cards. Each competitor will play two rounds at Dye’s Valley and two at the Sawgrass Country Club.
The field braved temperatures in the 40s with a brisk wind to start the first round but 29 players shot under par.
Cooper Musselman (Sawgrass), Ryan McCormick (Valley), Lanto Griffin (Valley) and Callum Tarren (Sawgrass) are tied at 3-under and 13 players, including past RSM Classic champions Austin Cook and Tyler Duncan, are tied at 2-under.
Did Corey Shaun have visions of a 59?
Shaun said the magic two-digit number in golf, a 59, briefly flashed through his mind after making a 20-foot birdie putt at the par-5 fifth hole to get to 9-under.
“I kind of thought about it at one point,” said the 28-year-old veteran of the Korn Ferry Tour and PGA Tour China. “I knew it was technically possible but then I started realizing that the last few holes are pretty tough. I wasn’t trying to shoot anything. I was just trying to hit the right golf shots at the time.”
Shaun birdied three holes in a row early in his round, a streak that included 20-foot birdie putts at Nos. 12 and 13. He mixed three more short birdie rolls with a 15-footer at No. 1, a 25-footer at No. 3 and his final birdie at No. 5.
Shaun missed only two fairways and three greens. He said his score was the result of a conservative game plan.
“I did not play aggressively at all today,” he said. “I pretty much played really conservative, consistent golf, a lot of really good 8-irons, 7-iron approach shots, stuff like that. [Hit it] to 15 feet and made a bunch of those. Stack up a lot of good golf shots and see what happens.”
Shaun almost didn’t make to Q-School
Oddly enough, Shan might not have been in Q-School had he not missed the cut in the Australian Open on Nov. 30.
He was entered in the Tour’s second-stage qualifier in Valencia, Calif., about three hours from his home, but was planning to withdraw if he made the weekend in Australia, since that would have given him only one day to get to Los Angeles for the first round at the Valencia Country Club on Dec. 3.
Shaun said he was happy with DP World Tour status at that point.
“100 percent … I told everyone if I made the cut [in Australia] I was going to WD from second stage,” he said. “I was thinking, because I had played so much golf, I had status on the DP World Tour … but I wasn’t going to get in that week’s [DP Tour] event and I wasn’t going to get in the event happening this week. So I had opening of two weeks in a row where I could play second stage and final stage of PGA Tour Q-School, and I guess I should play.”
Shaun has played five events in a month
He said his father eventually talked him into flying from Australia to Los Angeles and then to Ponte Vedra, after he finished solo second at Valencia.
It’s been quite the grind. Shaun had to survive six rounds to get his DP World Tour card and was in the 60s in five. He then shot 14-under at Valencia.
His scoring average in 11 qualifying rounds on both sides of the Atlantic is 67.63. Counting six rounds in Australia, Shaun has played 17 competitive rounds in 34 days.
“I was like, ‘I just want to rest and chill … I’ve been playing way too much golf already,'” Shaun said. “I just wanted to find an opening to relax. But obviously, this is a dream start. Can’t ask for anything more and I’m glad to be here.”
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: PGA Tour Q-School: Corey Shaun had a hot round on a cold day with a 61
