The China Mail - Noh fires 60 to grab PGA lead despite broken driver head

And he did it despite suffering a broken driver head on the 12th hole in his bogey-free round at TPC Craig Ranch in suburban Dallas.

"Everything was going amazing," Noh said. "Off the tee, missed two drivers because the crack of the driver head. Except two shots off the tee, everything going perfectly.

"I'm really happy for my career low on the PGA Tour. One shot missed to 59, but I'm really happy with that."

Noh, the 2010 Asian Tour Order of Merit winner, captured his only PGA title at the 2014 Zurich Classic of New Orleans, three years before it shifted to its current pairs format.

Noh's bogey-free round matched the Byron Nelson record shared by four other players and most recently achieved previously by Colombia's Sebastian Munoz in last year's opening round.

The most recent prior 60 on tour was by American Patrick Cantlay in the third round of last October's Shriners Children's Open.

After a birdie at the 11th hole, Noh smashed his tee shot well to the right of a cart path at the par-4 12th, Noh checked his driver head.

"When I hit on 12, I'm swinging so nicely, but keep like 70 yards going right," Noh said. "So I just look at the driver and it got the crack in it."

He salvaged par after dropping his approach within four feet of the hole, but rules officials said with just a crack he couldn't replace the driver.

Noh sent his next tee shot way left of the 13th fairway and then took the club out of play before saving par again with a six-foot putt then obtaining a replacement driver head and screwing it into place.

"I'm hitting one more driver on 13, and then finally it's gone, my driver head," Noh said. "That's why after the 13th we got the replacement."

Noh, who said he had never suffered a cracked driver head before, went with driver over a 3-wood at 13 despite the crack.

"I'm just trying to hit driver," he said. "It's just going like 50 yards left, but I still make the par, so I'm lucky with that."

After birdies at the par-4 14th and par-3 15th, Noh received a replacement driver head at the 16th hole and screwed it onto the shaft, a repair allowed under golf rules.

Noh made a 27-foot par putt at the 16th, then sank a 34-foot birdie at the par-3 17th and a nine-foot birdie at the par-5 18th.

"I have no idea," Noh said of the reasons for his long-putt success. "Just go make everything today."

Noh, who took a two-year hiatus from 2017-2019 to fulfill his mandatory military obligation in South Korea, matched his career-low nine-hole score with two 30s, the first coming in the third round of the 2015 St. Jude Classic.

Noh, 31, opened with back-to-back birdies, did it again at the fifth and sixth holes and closed the front nine with an eagle at the par-5 ninth, reaching the green in two and sinking an eight-foot eagle putt.

Sitting second in the clubhouse was Australian Adam Scott, the 2013 Masters champion. Scott fired a 63, his best opening round at the PGA event since a 62 at the 2014 Arnold Palmer Invitational.

C.Fong--ThChM