Wyndham Championship round one: Anyone for crazy golf?

Among the things Will MacKenzie likes to do as an ice-breaker, apparently, is stand on his head. He boasts a “stellar reputation". This week he’s even managed to stand the form book on its head to lead round one. Yet there are some intriguing similarities to last year when he notched his breakthrough victory at the Reno-Tahoe Open.

That came in August too, after a string of missed cuts and poor finishes. And it was begun with a low round - a 63 that time, one better than Thursday’s effort. So although the PGA Tour website reminds us that first-time leaders have only won this event three times since 1976, don’t be too surprised if MacKenzie makes it four. Last year he fell off the pace for a round, then climbed back and held on for dear life, despite carding his poorest score on the Sunday. He assures us he has no problems sleeping on a lead.

Mind you, his opposition last year was of a slightly lesser calibre even than this threadbare competition, and I don’t recall that event having the Alice in Wonderland feel of this one - 121 players under par? It’s the lowest scoring round in tournament history and several players - MacKenzie, Brian Davis and Jeff Overton for example - posted season best scores.

A lot of that is down to temperatures in the 90s helping the ball fizz through the air, and the receptive greens. But the rough is double its normal height by all accounts and one might have expected that to be something of a leveller.

The stats are all over the place and a total mismatch with last year. Accuracy of the tee? Distance? Forget it. The top 20 players could only average 56th and 72nd places for those two skills. Putting was hardly much better at 46th. The key ingredient so far seems to be hitting greens: four of the top 20, including MacKenzie, head the field for greens in regulation, missing just one.

It’s so odd I’m wondering if the stats haven’t been a bit muddled. We may get more of the same Friday, but temperatures are going to start cooling so things could change. For instance, the shorter hitters might start to struggle, which could spell trouble for the likes of Davis and Shigeki Maruyama, who stand out as the shortest drivers in the leading pack.

I have a feeling this competition is going to be stood on its head a few more times before we can spot a winner.