Golf

Tom Kim grabs early birthday present with lead at Travelers Championship

Kim’s eight-under-par opens a two-stroke advantage on the eve of his 22nd birthday.

Tom Kim lines up a putt on the 15th hole (Seth Wenig/AP)
Tom Kim lines up a putt on the 15th hole (Seth Wenig/AP) (Seth Wenig/AP)
By PA Sport Staff

Tom Kim gave himself an early birthday present as an opening 62 was enough for a two-shot lead in the Travelers Championship.

Kim, who turns 22 on Friday, wrapped up his bogey-free eight-under-par round at TPC River Highlands with back-to-back birdies.

Rickie Fowler was among those two shots back, alongside fellow Americans Akshay Bhatia, Kurt Kitayama and Will Zalatoris.

Scottie Scheffler tees off on the first tee (Seth Wenig/AP)
Scottie Scheffler tees off on the first tee (Seth Wenig/AP) (Seth Wenig/AP)

World number one Scottie Scheffler, who also celebrates his birthday on Friday, was among those a further stroke adrift.

Scheffler, who has won five times this year, finished outside the top 10 at the US Open – only the second time he has dropped that low this season – but three birdies in his first four holes blew away any cobwebs with an eagle three on the 13th.

“Definitely feel like I’m swinging a lot better than I did last week,” said Scheffler on the eve of his 28th birthday. “It’s nice to get here on some familiar surfaces and hit some good putts and see some balls go in.”

Tommy Fleetwood also eagled the 13th as a strong finish lifted him into a large group on three-under-par, including Ireland’s Seamus Power and Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg.