FORT WORTH, Texas — PGA Tour rookie and “die-hard” New York Knicks fan John Pak used his frustration to his advantage Thursday, shooting a 7-under 63 to lead the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial.
The New Jersey-raised Pak found all the motivation he needed when his Knicks blew a 14-point lead in the final three minutes of a 138-135 loss to the Indiana Pacers in Game 1 of the NBA’s Eastern Conference finals on Wednesday night.
“I’m a die-hard Knicks fan, and that was historically one of the worst losses I’ve ever seen in my life,” said Pak, who has one top-25 finish among seven made cuts in 12 events this year. “There was a fire lit under me, yeah, this morning. I was a little pissed off about that.”
Starting on the par-4 10th, Pak holed a 147-yard approach for eagle. He added five birdies in a bogey-free round. The 26-year-old Korn Ferry Tour graduate, and one-time winner on the PGA Tour Canada, is the fifth rookie to hold a first-round lead in an individual event this year.
He has a three-shot lead over nine players, with J.J. Spaun the highest-ranked among them at 27th. Tommy Fleetwood and 2023 Open Championship winner Brian Harman were among a group of nine players four back of Pak.
Now that he has the lead, what are Pak’s plans for Thursday night?
“Thankfully the Knicks aren’t playing tonight, so I won’t be stressed about that,” Pak said. “I didn’t sleep well after that loss last night. I’m going to recover, do a little stretching, and then maybe watch the Thunder game later tonight.”
Among the 15 players who are five shots back is world No. 1 and Dallas resident Scottie Scheffler, whose playoff experience as a fan went much better than Pak’s did.
Scheffler, coming off a win at the PGA Championship, spent his Wednesday evening at American Airlines Center, cheering on the Dallas Stars’ 6-3 victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of the NHL’s Western Conference finals.
“It was fun going to the hockey game last night,” said Scheffler, who will have an early tee time Friday. “I was able to still get home and get a decent amount of rest.”
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Scheffler also opened up his first round with flair, holing a putt for eagle from off the green on the par-5 first hole and a 23-footer for birdie on No. 2. He is going for a sweep of the PGA Tour events in the Dallas-Fort Worth area after winning three weeks ago at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, which he led wire to wire for an eight-shot victory while tying the tour scoring record of 253.
“On a day where I didn’t hit a lot of fairways on a golf course where you have to hit a lot of fairways, I posted a decent score,” Scheffler said. “Anything under par around here in these conditions isn’t a bad score. Obviously, I wish it was a little bit lower, but overall I feel decent about the position I’m in.”
Jordan Spieth, Scheffler’s fellow hometown favorite, shot 69 with birdies on two of his final four holes on the cozy course made famous by Ben Hogan, the only player to win Colonial in consecutive years (1946-47 and 1952-53).
Joel Dahmen made a hole-in-one on the 186-yard 13th when his tee shot stopped about 25 feet behind the hole, spun back and went in. The 37-year-old’s first career ace was followed by seven bogeys as he shot 74.
“Nine years out here, that’s a lot of par-3 attempts,” Dahmen said. “A lot have looked good, and to finally go in was pretty cool.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
