Rod Pampling finishes hot, takes SAS Championship lead

Rod Pampling of Australia caught fire on the back nine in order to post a 6-under 66 and take the first-round lead at the SAS Championship on Friday in Cary, N.C.

Five of Pampling's seven birdies came over his last eight holes at Prestonwood Country Club. His birdie at the par-4 18th ensured him a one-stroke lead over a 10-way tie for second place.

"Obviously started the day off really well, hit a lot of close shots," Pampling said. "Had a three-putt, which kind of stalled (the round). But then yeah, then I made a nice one on 11 which got us kickstarted. Had obviously five birdies in the last eight holes, which was nice. It was a good day."

Pampling's only win on the PGA Tour Champions came at the 2021 Boeing Classic. He entered the week a respectable 30th place in the Charles Schwab Cup money list. The SAS Championship is the final regular-season event before the Schwab Cup playoffs begin.

Pampling grabbed the lead while the course was gettable amid fair weather conditions.

"Once you get going on the back, yes, if you're driving it well," he said. "That's the key, still got to drive it well, got to be in the fairway. I was doing that, which just, yeah, allows you to be very aggressive out there. The course is in perfect condition, the greens are rolling great. It really was there for the taking today."

The 10-way tie at 5-under 67 includes New Zealand's Steven Alker, South African vet Ernie Els and Jerry Kelly. That trio entered the week in third, sixth and eighth place in the Schwab Cup standings, respectively.

Also tied at 67 are Vijay Singh of Fiji, Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand, Retief Goosen of South Africa, Jesper Parnevik of Sweden, Kirk Triplett, Rob Labritz and Brian Gay. Kelly, Labritz and Gay were the only ones of that group to post bogey-free rounds.

Parnevik rang up four birdies plus an eagle at the par-5 17th hole, but he was surprised by how well he played.

"Put it this way, my practice session on whatever it was, Wednesday, Thursday, was horrendous," Parnevik said. "Then I actually hit it all right this morning. I just told my caddie, ‘See what happens, see what we got.' So 5 under, definitely, definitely very good."