World No. 40 Talor Gooch finished birdie-birdie toward a 4-under 34-34=68 in R1 of The 150th Open to sit T4, four swings short of clubhouse leader and first-timer Cameron Young.
This is the Oklahoman’s second Open after a T33 last year at Royal St. George’s, which included his prior-tied-best R1 major score of 1-under 69 (72-67-70). His best finishes are a pair of top 25s, most recently a T20 at the 2022 PGA in a home game, where he also opened with 69 (70-74-68), and a T14 at the Masters in April, where he was T19 after 18 holes (72-74-73-71). The Oklahoma State alum, who arrived off a solo 7th two weeks ago at the LIV Portland, outpaced three bogeys with seven circles, posting +2.22 SG: Off-the-Tee, -1.45 SG: Approach, +0.70 SG: Around, and +3.09 SG: Putting. Afterward (link below): “Firmest I’ve ever seen, no doubt. Anybody I’ve asked over the last 48 hours has agreed. It was amazing.”