Jason Kokrak and Englishman Paul Casey are tied for the first-round lead at LIV Golf Mayakoba after shooting rounds of 6–under-par 65 on Friday in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.
The tournament kicked off LIV Golf’s second season at El Camaleon, a course designed by LIV CEO Greg Norman. It is LIV’s first foray into Mexico and its first time staging a tournament on a course that has hosted PGA Tour events.
Kokrak and Casey hold a two-shot lead over Peter Uihlein, Talor Gooch and Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz, who shot 4–under 67.
Kokrak and Casey shot their 65s in very different ways. Kokrak poured in six birdies, including a chip-in, and stayed bogey-free.
“With my type of game, I don’t always get the chance to have a bogey-free round,” Kokrak said.
Casey, meanwhile, started his round with a birdie at the par-4 sixth and was 5 under before taking a double bogey at the par-4 second hole. He bounced back by finishing his round with three consecutive birdies at Nos. 3–5.
Gooch was the only other player to go bogey-free Friday.
Dustin Johnson, last season’s individual champion and the captain of the defending team champion 4Aces, is tied for sixth at 3–under 68 with Charles Howell III, England’s Ian Poulter, Australia’s Marc Leishman and South Africa’s Branden Grace.
LIV’s highest-ranked player, world No. 5 Cameron Smith of Australia, is alone in 11th at 2–under 69.
Casey and Howell helped Crushers take the team lead at 10 under through one round. India’s Anirban Lahiri contributed a 1–under 70. The top three scores for each four-man team count for each round of the team score. Crushers captain Bryson DeChambeau was the odd man out for his team after opening with a 1–over 72 that included a double bogey-bogey-bogey stretch.
Crushers have a three shot lead over Johnson’s 4Aces and Brooks Koepka’s Smash, each at 7 under. 4Aces got contributions from Johnson, Uihlein and Pat Perez (even-par 71), and Smash featured Kokrak, Koepka (even) and Matthew Wolff (1 under).
