Madison,
10
June
2022
|
18:21 PM
America/Chicago

Flesch fires 65 to lead by one; Saturday play to start at 8 a.m.

FleschSteve Flesch tops the first-round leaderboard of the 2022 American Family Insurance Championship, after shooting a 7-under 65 Friday. He leads two players by one shot, including Miguel Angel Jimenez and Colin Montgomerie.

Saturday play to start an hour earlier

The start of Saturday’s second round at University Ridge Golf Course will begin an hour earlier due to anticipated storms later in the day. Play will begin at 8 a.m. CST. The AmFam Champ Celebrity Foursome, hosted by Andy North – featuring North, Juli Inkster, Derek Jeter and Brett Favre – will tee off at approximately 1 p.m. CST on the 10th tee.

Eagle highlights Flesch 65

In Friday’s first round, just over half of the 81-player field broke par, led by Flesch, whose round included a chip-in eagle on hole No. 11, six birdies and one bogey.  

“You know, I hit a lot of good shots, got away with a few scratchy ones,” he said. “Putted great and got the ball up and down all but one time, so I had a great day out there. But the putting was better than normal, and I was rewarded with a lot of good looks for birdie and capitalized on them.

JimenezJimenez continued his stellar play at the AmFam Champ, highlighted by three straight birdies on holes 15-17. He finished second at last year’s tournament after leading the first two rounds.

“[University Ridge] is a good golf course where you come and if you play well, you're going to be rewarded and if you don't play well, you going to suffer,” he said. 

Like Jimenez, Montgomerie’s round included six birdies and not a single bogey.Montgomerie

“I obviously played okay, obviously drove the ball well. I think it's a driver's golf course. You've got to put the wall in the fairway, which I did today. As long as I can drive the ball well, I'll be okay. So, we look forward to the next two days,” Montgomerie said.

Kelly, Stricker finish under par

Six players are tied for fourth place, including two-time defending champion Jerry Kelly, who finished 3-under on the last four holes. Tournament player-host Steve Stricker is in a tie for 28th place, after shooting a 1-under 71. 

“I just have to go out there [on Saturday] and have a good one, shoot one of those 7-, 8- or 9-under rounds and get back in there,” Stricker said. “There's a lot of birdie opportunities, there's some eagle opportunities if you can drive it in the fairway. Just going to have to go out and do it tomorrow.” 

First round leaderboard
First round notes from PGA TOUR Champions
Groupings and tee times for Saturday (moved up one hour)