Jhonattan Vegas Leads PGA Championship After Round 1 Amid Top Stars' Struggles

At the PGA Championship, Jhonattan Vegas of Venezuela stunned the field with a 7-under 64, his best score in 45 major rounds, taking a two-shot lead after the first round. Vegas's late surge included five birdies on his last six holes, but the biggest crowds were drawn to top players Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, and Xander Schauffele, who failed to deliver expected performances. McIlroy, fresh off a Masters win, shot a 3-over 74 without birdies on his last 12 holes, while Scheffler and Schauffele struggled with course conditions, particularly mud balls causing double bogeys on the 16th hole. Ryan Gerard, a PGA Tour rookie from North Carolina, and Australia's Cam Davis were close behind with 66s, while other notable scores included Alex Smalley and Ryan Fox at 67. Remarkably, for the first time in at least 30 years, none of the top 10 players in the world rankings were in the top 10 leaderboard after the opening round of a major. Scheffler described the day as challenging but praised his mental resilience in posting a respectable 69 despite not having his best game.