Scottie Scheffler shares seven-way lead on congested US PGA leaderboard

"It was gridlock on the opening day of the US PGA, where the leaderboard was backed up like Philly traffic. By the time it was all over, seven men were tied in the lead on three-under par, and another 42 were within three shots of them. Altogether a third of the field was within easy reach of the lead. It was record for a major championship, and they have been playing them since 1860."

"There are 16 major winners spread among them, including, ominously for everyone else, that man Scottie Scheffler. All the talk before the tournament was that it would be a turkey shoot, but it turned out to be one long tailback. The only thing missing was the traffic police. US PGA Championship, day one as it happened Actually they had one of them, too, or something near enough."

"A rules official on the first tee gave the 27-year-old South African Garrick Higgo a two-shot penalty for arriving 30 seconds late from the practice green. He still shot a 69. The really odd thing was that in a field where even a man who dropped two shots because he missed his tee time managed to end the day in contention, a couple of the biggest names in the game wound up all but out of it."

"The course, which last hosted a major back in 1962, is laid out around a natural basin. It is all canted fairways and cambered greens, and the players spent most of the day tilting over the ball like they were playing on the deck of a listing ship in a heavy swell. I started missing fairways, McIlroy said when he was asked to expand on his thoughts. From there, it's hard."

Seven men finished day one tied at three-under par, while 42 others were within three shots of the lead. A third of the field remained within easy reach, producing a record major-championship leaderboard. The tournament featured 16 major winners among the competitors, including Scottie Scheffler. Garrick Higgo received a two-shot penalty for arriving 30 seconds late from the practice green but still shot 69. Rory McIlroy struggled, finishing four-over after four straight bogeys on his last four holes, marking the first time he had done so in a major. The course layout around a natural basin forced players to contend with canted fairways and cambered greens, making ball striking difficult.

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