Jon Rahm cracks Cam Smith joke after fast start | Tournament of Champions R1

Jon Rahm shares the lead with Collin Morikawa and JJ Spaun after the first round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions on the PGA Tour.

Ben Smith

06 Jan 2023

Jon Rahm cracks Cameron Smith joke after going CRAZY LOW in Hawaii

Jon Rahm joked he was targeting Cameron Smith's record score of 34-under par after sharing a three-way tie for the lead after the first round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions on the PGA Tour.

Spain's Rahm, ranked No. 5 in the Official World Golf Ranking, sits on the top of the leaderboard in Hawaii with Collin Morikawa and JJ Spaun.

The three players all shot round of 9-under par 64 at the Plantation Course in Kapalua, a layout that yields plenty of scoring opportunities.

Tom Kim lies just one shot off the pace following a 65, and he produced the shot of the day in the process when holing out for eagle at the par-4 6th.

Smith is unable to defend his crown here having joined the LIV Golf League. The PGA Tour has indefinitely suspended members who have joined the breakaway circuit.

Asked if he was targeting Smith's score, Rahm stifled a laugh and said:

"If we have as little wind as we had today, yes, I would say so. Maybe not that much, but we should approach 30-under, yeah."

Rahm is using the new Callaway Paradym driver.

He added:

"It's driver, wedge for the most part all day, especially when there's not wind like this. So with greens being receptive and rolling as well as they are, you have to shoot low."

Jon Rahm cracks Cam Smith joke after fast start | Tournament of Champions R1

Elsewhere, England's Matthew Fitzpatrick, the reigning U.S. Open champion, is two shots back in a group of players at 7-under, which includes former World No.1 Scottie Scheffler.

Scheffler was dethroned by Rory McIlroy as the best player in the world late in 2022.

McIlroy has decided not to play this week.

Here's what Scheffler needs to do to regain the top spot.

There are 39 players in the field this week.

It represents the first tournament played on the PGA Tour to have been given "elevated status" with a bumper prize pool of $15m, meaning the winner will take home $2.7m.

The established, American circuit announced that 17 tournaments were to be elevated with bigger prize purses in response to LIV Golf.

American Billy Horschel was the only player in the field to shoot over par on day one, shooting 3-over.