Newcomer TPC Craig Lunch showed off a vintage version of Brooks Koepka on Thursday at the 2026 CJ CUP Byron Nelson. Carding an 8-under 63 in the first round, the five-time major champion finally found his footing on the greens and rose to near the top of the leaderboard in suburban Dallas, Texas, behind Taylor Moore, who shot a 62 later in the evening to earn one better deal.
“It was also just a comfortable group,” Koepka said. “Everyone feels like they’re feeding off each other, so it’s easy. Everyone’s having fun. It’s fun. It’s comfortable on the golf course.”
“The putter finally feels good. The putter felt good the last few days when I was working in the studio, and when I got here, it felt really comfortable. Rick (Elliott) was saying the same thing while watching. It also helps you compare what you’re feeling to reality and build a little bit of confidence. I’m happy with how everything went today.”
Koepka’s 63 may not have been the lowest of the day, but it was the highest of his trio, which also included Dallas resident Kim Si-woo and world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler. Kim had to make one more shot than Koepka to post a 64 to lead the large group at 7 under par, but Scheffler continued to play consistently, posting a 66 in his first effort in defending his title.
“I felt like we were pretty close. We did some good things,” Scheffler said. “I felt like I was a little short on iron, so we’ll see how it goes. It’s just a matter of getting closer and holing a few more putts. Overall, I felt like I did some good things. Just getting closer and holing a few more putts. But overall, there were a lot of good things.”
Even in his own backyard, Scheffler stole the stage from Koepka as the powerful right-hander recorded six birdies and an eagle on his scorecard. Players who entered the week inside the top 10 on greens in regulation gained approach and proximity to the hole in their strokes on the PGA Tour, and Koepka, who kept knocking on the door, finally broke through with a putter in round one and got more than two strokes on the field with that club in hand.
“It feels like a long way off right now, but yeah, it would be great (to win),” Koepka said. “I think the last time I won (the CJ Cup) I was back at No. 1 in the world. I think there’s a huge difference now between trying to go to a signature event and being on the way back to the tour.”
“This will definitely give me a lot of confidence, because I feel like I’m playing well. I haven’t had the results, mainly because of my putter, but I feel like I’m knocking on the door and I feel like I’m very, very close. I hope I get a chance on Sunday.”
Former U.S. Open champion Windham Clark is also tied with Scheffler at 5 under, as are PGA Tour newcomers Johnny Keefer and Neil Shipley, and 19-year-old Blaze Brown, who hopes to do well enough to earn special temporary membership on the PGA Tour by the end of the week.
leader
1. Taylor Moore (-9)
T2. Brooks Koepka, Jesper Svensson (-8)
Koepka had a new putter in his golf bag for the second week in a row, but unlike last week’s PGA Championship, he had a quality result at TPC Craig Ranch. When Koepka made an 18-foot birdie on the second hole of the round, the par-4 11th, the hole was immediately uncovered. That was just the beginning.
Koepka hit additional par breakers during the round from 14 feet, 3 feet, 11 feet, 16 feet, 5 feet and 3 feet. Koepka’s performance, which hit the legal 14 greens in the process, was made even more impressive by the fact that he hit just three fairways. With priority lies in effect, I didn’t have the luxury of cleaning the golf ball and playing it the way I wanted, but it would still be manageable.
contestants
T4. Emiliano Grillo, Keith Mitchell, Si-woo Kim, Stefan Jaeger, Michael Thorbjornsen, Tyler Duncan, Kensei Hirata (-7)
T11. Doug Ghim, Mackenzie Hughes, Hank Lebioda, Austin Eckrot, Lant Griffin (-6)
The best undefeated player on the PGA Tour this season may be Kim, who is looking for a chance to break into the winner’s circle with an opening 64. The performance marks Kim’s 11th round of 66 or lower on the PGA Tour this year, second only to Scheffler’s 12.
Like Koepka, Kim’s putter is the club that held him back. But on Thursday, that proved to be an asset as he improved by more than 1.50 on the green and then another 1.30 by sinking a putt from the front of the green for birdie on the first hole. With a stat line of 13 fairways and 16 greens in regulation, Kim can continue to climb to the top of this leaderboard as long as his putter allows.
“It was a good round and my putt was great,” Kim said. “My hitting was a little off, but I’m still managing to take it. Yeah, it was a good round. The greens were a little harder than I expected. But my putts were really good today, so it was a good round.”
game within a game
Blaze Brown’s magic number this week is 21. To earn special temporary membership on the PGA Tour, a solo finish of 21st or better is required. This allows you to accept unlimited sponsor exemptions to compete in PGA Tour events this season.
Brown’s 66 points puts him within that cutoff point, and his play on both the Korn Ferry Tour and PGA Tour, where he ranks ninth in races all season, suggests he’s not going anywhere. As of 2026, Brown has six top-25 finishes on the Korn Ferry Tour, including two runner-up finishes.
On the PGA Tour, he was even better as he was in the final group with Scheffler and Kim at the American Express and finished 18th. Brown finished third after leading last weekend at the Puerto Rico Open and most recently finished ninth at the Myrtle Beach Classic.
2026 CJ Cup Byron Nelson updated odds and picks
Odds from FanDuel Sportsbook
- Scotty Scheffler: +260
- Kim Si Woo: 13/2
- Brooks Koepka: 7-1
- Taylor Moore: 13-1
- Michael Thorbjornsen: 15-1
- Keith Mitchell: 18-1
- Stefan Jaeger: 20-1
Clark played well on Thursday, but Price hasn’t moved much, as he is listed at 45-1, just a few strokes off the pace. He hit the ball much better than he has in recent weeks, and perhaps most importantly, he stuffed the ball onto the green. We’ve seen throughout his career that once he finds a comfort level in the green complex, he tends to be enthusiastic all week long. If so, we should have a chance on Sunday.
