Masters 2017 leaderboard and scores: Charley Hoffman leads by 4 strokes after Round 1
Thursday’s round at Augusta National featured some high winds.
The First Round of the 2017 Masters Tournament began on Thursday morning, with an emotional Honorary Starters Ceremony honoring the late legendary golfer Arnold Palmer. As the round got started on Thursday morning, all eyes were on the world’s No. 1 golfer, Dustin Johnson.
Johnson, although he attempted to tee-off as scheduled around 2 p.m., withdrew Thursday afternoon because of a back injury. He sustained the injury after slipping on some stairs in his rental home on Wednesday afternoon.
Charley Hoffman surges on the back nine
But the star of the day was Charley Hoffman, who finished with a score of 65, sitting at 7-under on the leaderboard. Hoffman had an impressive back nine, being able to make five birdies in his last six holes before making par on the 18th hole. He holds a four-stroke lead heading into his Friday round, which is the largest first round lead since the year 1955.
Spieth struggles a bit, McIlroy and Mickelson come out strong
Most of the usual favorites also played at Augusta, including Jordan Spieth, and Rory McIlroy. Spieth finished scoring a 75 on the day, sitting tied for 41st at +3 after his round on Thursday. One of his biggest slip-ups happened on the 15th hole, where he made a quadruple bogey. Last year, he infamously made a quadruple bogey on the 12th hole during his final round on Sunday.
McIlroy scored a 72 on his first round, finishing at even, tied for 12th on the day. After making bogey on three holes in the front nine, he finished strong with birdies on 13, 15, and 16. He tees off at 10:45 a.m. tomorrow morning.
Three-time Masters champion Phil Mickelson finished sitting at 1-under, which ties him for fourth on the leaderboard. Mickelson made a nice eagle on the No. 2 hole, and he made birdies on holes 4, 13, and 16.
Windy conditions affect the round
The Monday and Wednesday practice rounds were suspended due to severe weather, and although that wasn’t present on Thursday, golfers had to manage some very strong winds. The strong northwest wind blew from 10 to 20 miles per hour, with gusts of up to 35 miles per hour. Some of the holes that were most affected by the wind and features high scores were No. 1, 15, and 18. Unfortunately, the forecast for Friday calls for more strong winds throughout the day.
The full leaderboard with Thursday’s results is below.
Position | Player | To Par | Thru | Today | R1 | R2 | Total |
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