Blanchet rides a pair of eagles to a season-best 62; Canadians Conners and Silverman shoot 63

SOUTHAMPTON, Bermuda (AP) — Chandler Blanchet made a pair of eagles, one from 50 feet and the other from 5 feet, to post his best score of the year — a 9-under 62 — and hold a one-shot lead after the first round of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship.

Blanchet, whose best finish this season was on another island in the Puerto Rico Open, added six birdies to his round. His only dropped shot came on the par-4 fourth, his 13th hole of the round, when he missed the green well to the left at Port Royal.

He led by one shot over a group including Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., and Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont. They were tied at 63 with Ben Kohles, and Danny Walker on a day when the wind was all over the place, from gusty to calm with a few passing showers.

“The conditions were amazing,” said Conners, who at No. 61, is the highest-ranked player in the field. “The wind blows pretty hard here and it was fairly mild today. The golf course is playing great, it’s in wonderful shape and was really a nice day. A little bit wet early, but for the most part we got really lucky with some pretty pleasant conditions to play in.”

Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., was also in the mix with an opening round of 64.

Blanchet is at No. 114 in the FedEx Cup Fall, and points are all that matter this time of the year for so many players. Bermuda is one of five tournaments left in the season, and the top 100 keep full status for 2027. 

An example of the wind not hurting as much as it often does at Port Royal came on the par-5 seventh hole as Blanchet was finishing his round. 

“The wind was kind of calming down, so it was pretty favorable,” he said. “Hit a smooth 5-iron there to like 5 feet. That was sweet.”

His other eagle came on the 17th, the shortest par 5 but with water lurking to the left. 

“Yeah. No. 17, I guess that was my last eagle. I hit a great drive,” Blanchet said. He only had about 180 yards in, but left it out far too the right, only to hole the putt from just outside 50 feet.

“Just dripped in on the last revolution,” he said.

Kohles had a chance to sew up his PGA Tour card at No. 19 going into the Korn Ferry Tour Championship (the top 20 earn cards). But he was playing well enough that he went to the Baycurrent Classic in Japan and tied for 17th. Now he’s at No. 80, virtually a lock for a card, and now can think about finishing in the top 60 to get into two $20 million signature events.

Kohles made a career-best six straight birdies, all of them in the 6-foot range until the last one, which was about 12 feet. 

“It’s pretty nice I think to feel a lot more comfortable,” Kohles said. “Going into the fall it was funny. I obviously decided to play the fall out here and skip the last three Korn Ferrys, and as good as I played on both tours I wasn’t really locked on either one. So, it was really nice to have those three good finishes to start the fall and pretty much secure my top 100 for next year.

“Just feel like I’m just kind of freewheeling and trying to play my best and see where it puts me.”

Hughes and Emiliano Grillo were in the large group of players who shot 64 to wind up two shots back after the first round. Without the consistently blustery wind, the course played to an average score of 68.5.

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