Scott Simpson found out Byron Nelson is a good tipper.
Simpson used a piece of advice from the 81-year-old golf legend, a former working pro at the Inverness Club, to tie the course record of 64 in the first round of the PGA Championship on Thursday.Fifty-seven players broke par, making it the lowest scoring first round in 75 years of PGA Championships. None of them, however, did it as well as the soft-spoken, graying Simpson.
"The majors set up for my kind of game," Simpson said. "I play well on these kind of courses where the premium is on accuracy, control, patience and a good short game."
And then there was the tip from Nelson, which Simpson got Wednesday while speaking about Inverness' tiny greens with Nelson and his wife, Peggy.
"Byron always said shoot for the middle of the greens and you'll have a birdie putt," Mrs. Nelson said.
Simpson followed that advice in a 7-under-par round that tied the course record set by Bob Tway in the 1986 PGA.
The bogey-free effort was the highlight of the scoring explosion that included a field scoring average of 71.99, more than a full stroke lower than the previous mark set in 1985 at Cherry Hills.
The round also featured the first double eagle in PGA history, a 220-yard 5-wood shot by club pro Darrell Kestner of Manhasset, N.Y., that found the cup on the par-5 13th hole.
There was very little wind and the course was vulnerable to scoring, Simpson explained.
"The fairways are really good, so you have a chance with the irons to get 'em close. The greens are soft enough to hold a shot. And they're medium speed so you can take a pretty good run at your putts," he said.
He did just that, one-putting half the holes he played. But he was not alone.
Veteran Lanny Wadkins, needing a victory here to help his chances for a spot on the American Ryder Cup team, scored an eagle-2 on a 139-yard 9-iron shot as the highlight of 65, one shot behind Simpson.
Dudley Hart and former BYU golfer Richard Zokol were another back at 66, while lefty Phil Mickelson, who finished birdie-birdie, led an international gathering at 67.
Also at four under par were Barry Lane of England, Eduardo Romero of Argentina, Steve Elkington of Australia and Americans Dan Forsman (of Provo), Mark McCumber, Mike Hultert, Robert Gamez and Loren Roberts.
British Open champ Greg Norman of Australia and England's Nick Faldo were in another large group at 68, while Tom Watson and Paul Azinger shot 69.
Defending champion Nick Price of Zimbabwe, a winner of his last three American starts, was shaking his head after a 74.
Simpson, on the other hand, was simply concerned with keeping his name atop the leaderboard. And he knew it would not be easy.
"This was one of those days where everything went my way," he said. "I played well, I putted well, I got up and down when I had to.
"But this is a major. I still think it's a tough golf course. You can't expect to shoot scores like that every day. It's going to level out. We're all going to have our troubles," he said.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
PGA leaders
Scott Simpson 33-31-64 -7
Lanny Wadkins 33-32-65 -6
Dudley Hart 33-33-66 -5
Richard Zokol 34-32-66 -5
Other Locals
Dan Forsman 34-33-67 -4
Rick Fehr 35-35-70 -1
K. Clearwater 40-38-78 +7