Keegan Bradley goes from last man in to top of the leaderboard, Scheffler tweaks his back among 5 things to know at 2024 BMW Championship

CASTLE ROCK, Colo. — The PGA Tour returned to the Rocky Mountains for the first time in more than a decade.

Playing at an elevation of more than 6,300 feet and dealing with the altitude was a hot topic of conversation as players tried to figure out how to adjust to the thin air.

“I think the highlight (of the day) was hitting it 430 down the 10th,” said Adam Scott.

Castle Pines Golf Club had been a fixture on the Tour for 21 years before bowing out at the start of the FedEx Cup era in 2007. Jack Nicklaus re-designed the course for the pros latest visit, stretching it to 8,130 yards. Justin Thomas, speaking on Sirius/XM PGA Tour Radio described Castles Pines as “if Shadow Creek and Caves Valley had a baby.”

On Thursday, Keegan Bradley, the last man in the field at No. 50, shot to the top of the leaderboard with an opening-round 66 before play was suspended due to lightning in the area. It would be his 11th lead or co-lead after the first round, and he’s 0-for-10 in holding on to those previous leads, including at the 2022 BMW. Here are five things to know from the opening round of the BMW Championship.

The last in shall be first

Keegan Bradley after a birdie putt on the 18th hole during the first round of the BMW Championship golf tournament at Castle Pines Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

The last man into the 50-man field at the BMW Championship is at the top of the leaderboard after the opening round.

Keegan Bradley drilled his second shot at 18 from 176 yards to 10 feet and rolled in the birdie putt to shoot 6-under 66 at Castle Pines Golf Club and take a two-stroke clubhouse lead at the second leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs. Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, who won last week, finished one stroke back at 67, waiting out a 3-hour, 10 minute suspension of play due to lightning in the area to complete his final hole. He stuffed his approach to 2 feet at 18 but somehow missed the putt.

Bradley, who was named the 2025 U.S. Ryder Cup captain in July, struggled last week at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, finishing T-59, and dropped from 39th place in the season-long race to a precarious position straddling the No. 50 cutoff and that was changing by the minute. After he completed his round in Memphis, he went back to his room and sweated it out seeing whether he’d advance to the second of three playoff events or go home and hang with his two kids.

“I had the FedEx Cup standings, the coverage on, the featured holes, my phone. I had it all going,” said Bradley, who ended up as the ‘Bubble Boy’ at No. 50. “Sunday afternoon was one of the toughest afternoons of my PGA Tour career. It was really brutal. It’s such a relief to be here. I just felt a lot calmer today.”

It showed as the 2018 BMW champ made six birdies and no bogeys, and holed a 10-foot par putt at No. 7 to keep his momentum going. He is projected to improve from bubble boy status to No. 4 heading into the FedEx finale. This week the new cut off is to make the top 30 and advance to the Tour Championship at East Lake, where the winner will earn $25 million in bonus money. Despite the pressure to crack the top 30, Bradley said he and his caddie talked about going about their normal routine and not force things.

“Try to birdie any hole I can,” Bradley said. “That was the plan.”

Scheffler tweaks his back

Scottie Scheffler of the United States reacts on the 17th hole during the first round of the BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club on August 22, 2024 in Castle Rock, Colorado. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

It’s never good to see a professional golfer reaching for their lower back after hitting a shot and it’s even worse when that golfer is the world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who is trying to win the FedEx Cup for the first time and cap off a spectacular season.

But on the 17th hole, Scheffler hit his second shot and touched his lower back with his left hand.

Scheffler finished with a couple of pars and posted three birdies and two bogeys for an opening-round 1-under 71. Afterwards, Scheffler downplayed any potential injury, saying, “it’s fine.”

Scheffler did concede that he woke up with a sore back and had trouble loosening it up.

“It was hard for me to get through it and I was laboring most of the day to get through the ball,” he explained. “On 17 I was trying to hit a high draw, and that’s a shot where I’ve really got to use a big turn, big motion.”

Asked to elaborate on what happened, he said, “Maybe I hit a few too many balls yesterday or something. It was just a little sore. I’m sure I’ll get some ice on it and stuff and I’ll be totally fine tomorrow.”

Would he be seeking any special treatment? “Just normal routine. Just like always,” he said.

Scheffler was paired on Thursday with Xander Schauffele, who is second in the FedEx Cup and shot 69 to best Scheffler, the FedEx Cup leader, by two strokes.

Schauffele said he noticed that Scheffler was stiff when he tried to turn his head but joked that it may be a bigger problem for the field than for Scheffler, noting that he needed treatment on his neck at the Players Championship and elsewhere when he won. “I guess it’s a bad sign for everyone else,” he said.

Scott returns 24 years later

Adam Scott hits his second shot on the 18th hole during the first round of the BMW Championship golf tournament at Castle Pines Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Adam Scott was among the pack that shared third after carding 4-under 68s. Scott made his Tour debut at Castle Pines at the International in 2000, a Tour event which was discontinued after 2006. Scott and Jason Day (2006) were the only two players in the field this week to play here before.

“To think about however many events it is that I’ve played now and been successful out here for a long time, it was inspiring at the time, and it’s fun to come back to where it all began,” said Scott.

The 44-year-old Aussie enters the week at No. 41 in the FedEx Cup but when asked whether he knew where he needed to finish to make the top 30, he said, “Good. I mean, I don’t know. It moves around so much. Top 5 is kind of the goal, obviously. I think a top 5 would do it. Anything else, you never know. I feel like I’ve played on a bubble all year, and unless I’m running away by six shots on Sunday, I’m probably going to be on a bubble all week this week, as well, if I’m playing good.”

Conners’ quest

Corey Conners of Canada plays a shot on the 17th hole during the first round of the BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club on August 22, 2024 in Castle Rock, Colorado. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Corey Conners has a lot a stake this week. He started the week at No. 33 in the FedEx Cup and with work to do to make East Lake. That’s nothing new for Conners who has been in this position before.

“Just business as usual,” he said.

He’s off to a strong start, shooting 4-under 68.

“Hit the ball really nicely,” he said. “A lot of fairways, a lot of greens, and that’s the recipe I wanted to stick to today, and I was able to do that pretty well.”

Also at stake for Conners is trying to secure an automatic spot on the International Team for the Presidents Cup. The Canadian entered the week at No. 7 in the point standings and only the top six will qualify automatically. The Presidents Cup is being held in late September in Montreal and he’s bound and determined to make Mike Wier’s team.

FedEx Cup bubble watch

Alex Noren after his second shot on the 11th hole during the first round of the BMW Championship golf tournament at Castle Pines Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Only 30 players will advance to the Tour Championship, the FedEx Cup finale to be contested next week in Atlanta. When play during the first round was suspended due to lightning in the area, there were four players projected to move in and four players projected to move out.

IN

Keegan Bradley from No. 50 to No. 4.

Corey Conners from No. 33 to No. 20.

Adam Scott from No. 41 to No. 22.

Alex Noren from No. 45 to No. 23.

OUT

Brian Harman (T-22) from No. 29 to No. 31.

Denny McCarthy (T-15) from No. 30 to No. 32.

Jason Day (T-49) from No. 25 to No. 35.

Davis Riley (T-44) from No. 26 to No. 36.

But there will be so much more volatility in the days to come. Nick Dunlap started the day at No. 49 and was 5 under thru 14 holes and had improved to No. 9. Then he made a double bogey at 15 and he dropped to No. 39. So get ready for some Sunday drama on who is headed to East Lake.