Jacob Bridgeman regains confidence after taking first-round lead at 3M Open

As golfers wrapped up the first round of the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine on Thursday, Jacob Bridgeman birdied five of the final seven holes to take the lead with an 8-under-par 63. It was a welcome change of pace for the 24-year-old PGA Tour rookie, who had missed the cut in his previous three tournaments.

“I’ve never had any confidence issues until the last few weeks, and I’ve told a few people that I feel like I’ve been kicked in the face,” Bridgeman said. “I’m still pretty young, I have to remind myself of that. These are all new lessons I’m facing every week.”

Bridgeman, ranked 206th in the world, said he has struggled with his mental game over the past three tournaments, although that was one of his strong points while playing golf for Clemson, winning the ACC Tournament and earning a spot on the Korn Ferry Tour.

After last week’s Barracuda Championship in Truckee, Calif., Bridgeman spoke with his parents, his college coach and his girlfriend, reminding himself that “golf is not my identity,” he said. “I’m not just a golfer, I have more to live for.” With his former coach, he discussed “some of the things we did in college, how we built each other up. He’s always been there with me and helped me.”

In his 22 PGA Tour events, Bridgeman has yet to finish in the top 10.

Carnival commemorated

PGA Tour broadcast crews wore blue ribbons on their caps and collars Thursday to honor longtime Sirius XM PGA Tour commentator Mark Carnevale.

The PGA Tour announced he died unexpectedly Monday at age 64.

Carnevale played his last tournament at the Scottish Open two weekends ago and was scheduled to play in this week’s 3M Open.

“I felt like we lost a part of the tour. You know we’re a family here,” Tony Finau told Sirius XM PGA Tour radio. “I see his smile when I think of him.”

Gophers Gallery

Former Gophers golfer Ben Warian, competing as an amateur on a sponsor’s exemption, finished his first round at 2 under par, tied for 46th. The Stillwater native, who graduated in May, started the back nine and shot 5 under par through 10 holes before missing the fairway on No. 2 and three-putting No. 3 to record back-to-back double bogeys.

“On these first nine holes, I proved a lot to myself,” Warian said. “My level is certainly good enough. [for the pros]it just keeps tightening up the misfires a little bit.”

Warian capped his day with a sliding right-to-left birdie putt on the ninth hole, much to the delight of the gallery of friends and family who came to follow him around TPC Twin Cities.

“You name them, I guess they’re there,” Warian said. “Birds are always friendly, and when they’re accompanied by a few hundred people who are also screaming, it’s even more fun.”

Erik van Rooyen, another former Gophers golfer who is heading to Paris to compete for South Africa, finished 4 over with two double bogeys on the day.

Pressure for points

The 3M Open is considered the penultimate tournament in the season-long FedEx Cup competition, leaving several of the top players from the first round looking to add a few more points to their PGA Tour season totals and qualify for the playoffs beyond the 70-player limit.

“At the end of the day, I have two events left before the playoffs, and I’m not in the playoffs yet,” Andrew Novak said. Novak is 84th in the FedEx Cup standings and finished Thursday tied for third at 6-under. “Even if I play well, it doesn’t really matter. I have to play better.”

The top 125, 70, 50 and 30 scores guarantee players spots in specific events next year. Martin Trainer, tied for third with Novak and Patrick Rodgers, is 137th in the Cup standings this year. Rodgers is 51st. Mackenzie Hughes, who shot 7-under par and is alone in second, is 50th.

“Whatever number you want, I’m focused on that. But 125 would be great, 70 is obviously the biggest goal, 50,” the coach said. “I can’t really control that, but I can try to control my golf ball.”

Rodgers birdied five straight holes midway through Thursday’s first round.

“There’s a big difference between being in the top 50 and playing in the marquee events and not having those opportunities, so there’s so much to play for,” Rodgers said. “I’m just trying to play my best golf. I feel like I’m playing well at the right time, which is exciting.”

Last minute changes to team lineups

Billy Horschel, last week’s British Open runner-up, was the favourite heading into the 3M Open but withdrew on Thursday morning after waking up with a fever.

“I feel like all my muscles are locked up,” he said. “I tried to do a little warm-up at the gym, but it didn’t respond. I tried to go out on the golf course and hit a few balls. My body just won’t cooperate.”

“I was looking forward to playing here at the 3M. I played here last year and finished well. The event is well organized, so I’m very disappointed not to be able to play here after having a very strong finish last week.”

Notable scores

Finau, the 2022 3M Open champion and ranked 19th in the world, shot 4 under par, while the top-ranked golfer in the field, No. 11 Sahith Theegala, went one better with a 5 under par. Next year’s U.S. Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley shot 1 under par. Defending 3M Open champion Lee Hodges shot 2 under par.

Of the 156 golfers, 85 shot under par on Thursday, with sunny weather and a light breeze throughout the day.

Journalist Jerry Zgoda contributed to this report.

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