Daniel Berger poured in six of his nine birdies on the back nine on his way to a sterling 9-under-par 63 and a three-stroke lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Thursday in Orlando, Fla.
Berger finds himself comfortably ahead of Collin Morikawa and Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg (6-under 66) after his bogey-free trip around Bay Hill Club and Lodge.
Berger hasn’t won on the PGA Tour since 2021 and struggled to get back to his competitive peak after a back injury cost him half of 2022 and all of 2023. He had a memorable day with his irons and wedges, as his approaches set up birdies from 6 feet, 4 feet and 2 feet at Nos. 7, 10 and 11.
Morikawa, who ended a two-plus-year title drought last month at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, had an up-and-down day until a remarkable finish.
With five birdies and three bogeys on his card through 15 holes, Morikawa sank a 15-foot eagle putt at the par-5 16th, hit a dart at the par-3 17th and tapped in for eagle and then holed a 27-foot birdie putt to go 4 under in the final three holes.
Jhonattan Vegas of Venezuela is tied for fourth at 5-under 67 with Cameron Young. Xander Schauffele, Australian Adam Scott and New Zealand’s Ryan Fox are another shot behind.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler is in decent position with a 2-under 70. He had been plagued by slow starts at each of his three previous tournaments, shooting 72 or worse in the first round before recovering to respectable finishes each time.
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland and Rickie Fowler were among a handful of players still finishing their rounds as of 5:30 p.m. ET. Though it’s a $20 million signature event, the Arnold Palmer Invitational features a 36-hole cut at the top 50 and ties.
