On a windy day on St. Simons Island, Georgia, Maverick McNealy made his way to the top of the 2024 RSM Classic leaderboard. The Stanford graduate navigated bogey-free through Sea Island's Seaside Course, posting six birdies and an eagle to get in to shoot 8-under 62 in the first round of the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup fall finals. McNealy was caught by Michael Thorbjornsen late in the first round as the PGA Tour rookie shot an 8-under 64 on the more accessible Plantation Course.
“I feel like we did really well,” McNealy said. “I rode great, iron play was about as good as it has been all year. The last three tournaments have been really great and this is the part of my game that I wanted to improve the most. I did my part today and got everything.” Up and down and putting were great today too. There's really nothing weak today.
When McNealy began the year with a major medical extension, he made it easy to take advantage of his early chances to regain full-time status. Meanwhile, in the midst of the Aon Next 10, which qualifies for the first two signature events of 2025, the right-hander is looking for more than just a spot in the Pebble Beach and Riviera fields, but instead wants a spot in the winner's circle secure.
“I started the fall wanting to be in the top 60, and now that that's pretty much settled, Scott and I want to come to Kapalua,” McNealy said. “That’s our next box to tick, so a good start to that today.”
McNealy heads to the Plantation Course on Friday, where Thorbjorsen was among the many who suffered a low point on Thursday. McNealy's Stanford counterpart, who recently left the college ranks via PGA Tour University, will persevere through the next 54 holes just as he did last summer when he finished second at the John Deere Classic in his third start as a pro.
The leaders
T1. Maverick McNealy, Michael Thorbjornsen (-8)
The good news for Thorbjornsen is that six of the last seven RSM Classic winners started at the Plantation Course. The bad news is that he survived the easier of the two courses and shares the lead with a player who still has a date with the Plantation Course.
The 23-year-old should feel more than comfortable in this position, despite making his eleventh start on the tour this week. Thorbjornsen said at the start of his professional career that he wanted to emulate the success of Ludvig Åberg, who finished No. 1 on the PGA Tour University the year before, and now has the opportunity to do just that. A win would secure him starts at The Sentry, the Masters and the PGA Championship and open his first full-time season on the PGA Tour.
Other candidates
3. Andrew Novak (-7)
T4. Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Chandler Phillips (-6)
T6. Patrick Rodgers, Michael Kim, Kevin Yu, Kelly Kraft, Keith Mitchell, Harris English, Austin Eckroat (-5)
A name that many had been circling at the start of 2024 was that of Dumont de Chassart. The Belgian arrived on the PGA Tour fresh from his rookie of the Year campaign on the Korn Ferry Tour, but aside from a few good starts in other competition, Dumont de Chassart struggled for most of his rookie year to get on your feet.
With two top-25 finishes and 13 missed cuts in his first 23 starts, the 24-year-old found something in Bermuda, where he secured a podium finish and breathed some life into his season. Dumont de Chassart is within the cut-off limit for conditional status with his play last week and is now hoping for another quality result that will catapult him into the top 125 that will secure him full-time status.
“I learned a lot this year, I would say,” said Dumont de Chassart. “You know, I'm glad it's working out. Maybe a little late, but as a rookie you get to play a new course every week. This isn't easy. I made some changes at the start of the year which was a little difficult. “In the beginning, especially when it came to my confidence, the fact that I finished in the top three last week definitely gave me one Pushed and to come out today and shoot a 6 under round is pretty solid in this wind.”
Bubble clock
There is little movement when it comes to the Aon Next 10, with Novak and Yu expected to break into the top 60 after excellent first rounds. While they hope to compete in the first two signature events next year, others only hope to play on the PGA Tour. While Dumont de Chassart and Thorbjornsen (who is safe regardless of the result due to PGA Tour University) move into the top 125, Wesley Bryan and Joel Dahmen are among a handful of players dropping out.
T12 | -4 | Dylan Wu | 121 | 131 |
155 | +6 | David Skinns | 122 | 120 |
T4 | -6 | Adrian Dumont de Chassart | 124 | 142 |
T80 | E | Sam Ryder | 125 | 122 |
T34 | -2 | Wesley Bryan | 126 | 125 |
T80 | E | Zac Blair | 127 | 123 |
T101 | +1 | Joel Dahmen | 128 | 124 |
Åberg's return after a slow start
At the start of the first round it seemed as if the defending champion hadn't missed a beat after a two-month injury layoff. After making birdie on No. 1, Åberg struggled from there, finding himself in trouble off the tee more than once.
Åberg added three bogeys to his scorecard before the turn and had his biggest mistake on the par-4 10th when he overcooked his drive and reached the penalty box. A triple bogey saw the Swede fall back to 5 over, then fight back with a couple of nice birdies to finish the day with 73, his highest score since The Open.
“It was tough, obviously it was a tough day,” Åberg said. “There was a lot of rust, but I also felt like the good was pretty good, but the bad was really bad. A little bit of everything today, but overall I’m pretty happy to be playing golf again.”
2024 RSM Classic updated odds and tips
golf/” target=”_blank”>Golf betting Odds provided below via DraftKings Sportsbook. Check out the latest DraftKings Promo to get into the game.
- Maverick McNealy: 3-1
- Andrew Novak: 9-1
- Michael Thorbjornsen: 10-1
- Patrick Rodgers: 12-1
- Michael Kim: 16-1
- Harris English: 18-1
Only Kim and English are PGA Tour winners listed under 20-1, so confidence isn't high among this group. Of the favorites, Novak is attracting the most interest, having just completed a competition in Bermuda and having both his iron game and his putter in good shape. Asked to look further down, Yu, who is just three points behind at 55-1, seems more than fair, having already won this fall.
