Arjun Atwal shot a 63 on the PGA Tour... 25 minutes after entering the field
On Thursday morning, Arjun Atwal was sat having breakfast at 8.45 am at Port Royal. At 9.10 am, he was teeing off in the Butterfield Bermuda Championship.
Arjun Atwal arrived at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship on Thursday morning without a place in the field, looking to complete 72 holes on the PGA Tour for the first time since the Barbasol Championship.
He wanted to arrive before the first tee time at Port Royal to give himself the best chance of getting a place in the field, so a 7.30 am arrival and an early driving range session it was.
The 2010 Wyndham Championship winner went to get some breakfast and at 8.45 am, his caddie texted him to say he had a 9.10 am tee time. Nicholas Lindheim had withdrawn with a back injury.
"I don't know who that is, but thank you, Nicholas," Atwal said. "I left my breakfast, came out, hit a few drivers and off we went. It was fun, started with three birdies in a row."
Atwal made an incredible nine birdies and one bogey to shoot a 63 and after 18 holes, he was just one shot behind leaders Austin Smotherman and Harrison Endycott on 8-under-par.
Arjun Atwal lost his father 3 months ago and has only played golf one time since.
Today he sits at solo second @Bermuda_Champ. https://t.co/snguWBMDNk pic.twitter.com/QHeI41NiAr
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 27, 2022
The 49-year-old only played seven times on the PGA Tour last season, making just two cuts at the Barbasol and last year's event in Bermuda.
Atwal admitted that he hasn't played much recently as three months ago, he lost his father. He only returned to the golf course last Friday after his loss.
Atwal last won on the Asian Tour at the Dubai Open in 2008. He is also a three-time winner on the DP World Tour, which used to be named the European Tour.
"I've never had a loss in my immediate family. It's my first one, so it's really hard to deal with. And with my parents, they lived in India. My mom still lives in India. Not having seen them for all these years, it was really tough on me," Atwal added.
"The game's just a game. I take it for what it is now, you know, and I have nothing to prove to anybody. I've won out here, I've won on the European Tour, the Asian Tour and I'm looking forward to the 50 tour next year after March, that will be fun."
