Xander Schauffele endured a challenging moment during the opening round of the Zozo Championship in Japan, as a wayward tee shot on the par-four ninth at Narashino Country Club left him facing a tough decision. The 30-year-old, who claimed both the PGA Championship and The Open earlier this year, found his ball nestled among tree roots.
Rather than taking a penalty drop, Schauffele opted to attempt two shots from the tricky position, but each attempt failed to move the ball. After the second miss, Schauffele laughed and shook his head, contemplating a third attempt before finally deciding to take an unplayable lie penalty.
Reflecting on the moment, Schauffele admitted, “I wanted to take a photo of it almost, how bad it was. For me to think I can do anything definitely got me in a hole there.” He went on to describe his choices, adding, “I should have just taken an unplayable, but I was an idiot and tried to hit it. Then I was stubborn and tried to hit it again, then finally took an unplayable.”
The incident resulted in a quadruple-bogey eight, which turned out to be the only major setback in his three-over round of 73. Schauffele’s day otherwise included one birdie and 16 pars, leaving him 10 shots behind first-round leader Taylor Moore. Moore, also of the United States, surged to the lead with a round of 63, finishing at seven under par and establishing a one-shot lead over Americans Max Greyserman, Eric Cole, and Colombia’s Nico Echavarria.
Meanwhile, England’s Harry Hall, who celebrated his first PGA Tour victory in July, finished at two under, five strokes behind the lead. Defending champion Collin Morikawa posted a round one shot further back.
As the tournament progresses, Schauffele will aim to recover from the difficult ninth and challenge for a stronger position on the leaderboard in Japan.