Max Homa, Keith Mitchell Lead Genesis Invitational With Matching 64s

Holed-out bunker shots highlighted both Mitchell and Homa’s rounds.

Max Homa and Keith Mitchell shot a pair of 7-under 64s to share the early lead at the Genesis Invitational, the PGA Tour’s third “designated” event of the season. While Homa played in the morning wave and Mitchell in the afternoon, both of their stellar rounds were highlighted by holed-out bunker shots. 

Homa, who started on Riviera’s drivable par-4 10th, was faced with a dicey flop shot after leaving his tee shot in a tough position for an up-and-down behind the left rear bunker. When his second shot came up short of the putting surface and found the sand, Homa was looking at the potential for a big number on the well-protected hole. But Homa’s bunker shot ended up in the bottom of the cup, and the 2021 Genesis champion got a nice little boost of momentum for the remainder of his round. 

“I told Joe that was probably the coolest way I ever started a round because I hit a good drive and you were kind of praying. I had a not-so-good lie in a not-so-great spot and I hit a pretty good flop shot, it came up a step or two short and now I'm staring bogey or worse in the face,” Homa said. 

“But I thought I collected myself. I knew I hadn't done a whole lot wrong, so trusted my bunker game. I hit a very good bunker shot, I will say, but that was a nice boost.”

*Try to drive green.
*Dump flop shot into the bunker.
*Hole bunker shot.

Opening birdie for 2021 @thegenesisinv champ Max Homa on the par-4 10th.pic.twitter.com/u7L00ltt30

— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) February 16, 2023

Homa went on to post a 2-under 34 on his front nine, followed by an impressive 5-under 30 on his back nine. The Cal-Berkeley product’s strong opening round was no surprise. Despite a weak finish at last week’s WM Phoenix Open, Homa has quite the history at California venues. Four of Homa’s six PGA Tour victories have occurred in his home state. 

Mitchell’s holeout came on Riviera’s 14th, marking his sixth birdie of the day. The 31-year-old attributes the current state of his game to some ramped up short game work. Mitchell even noted in his post-round interview that is was Parker McLachlin—the same short game coach who Collin Morikawa recently teamed up with—who helped him clean up around the greens. 

“A couple years back I was just practicing on the range at Phoenix, might have been last year, and met up with Parker McLachlin and he kind of taught me a few things that I didn't really understand,” Mitchell said. “From there I've just kind of been able to take it and just understand my feels versus kind of the physics of how chipping works.”

Another notable competitor’s short game looked solid as well: 82-time PGA Tour winner and tournament host, Tiger Woods. Woods concluded his round with three straight birdies, leading him to a 2-under 69. On the 18th, Woods stuck his approach to 7 feet and confidently holed the short range putt. 

World No. 3 Jon Rahm sits one shot behind Homa and Mitchell, while Collin Morikawa, Matt Kuchar and Harris English sit two back.