Canadian Hughes shares lead at Memorial

TSN Senior Reporter

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Sometimes in golf, it’s not the swing but the guy swinging the club that causes all the problems.

After missing the cut in his last two starts, Mackenzie Hughes decided to be a little easier on himself when he missed a shot.

It paid off on Thursday when Hughes shot an opening-round 67 and found himself tied for the lead at the Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio.

It marked the fifth time in his career that he’s led or co-led a PGA Tour event after the first round.

“It was a nice day. I mean, I hit a few loose ones that I'd like to have back, but I did so many good things that it's kind of easier to forget about those,” said the Dundas, Ont., product. “When I made those mistakes, I tried to tell myself that I was swinging it really well and that there was really no need to panic or worry about those misses. And just made a commitment to having a nice attitude today, and that along with hitting the ball nice was a good combo.”

Hughes made nine birdies on his round, the most of any player in the field, including one on his final hole, the ninth, where he chipped in. The low point of the day came on the 17th when he hit his tee shot well right off the tee leading to a double-bogey.

In previous weeks, it may have been easy for Hughes to get down after a bad hole such as that, but after the PGA Championship he went home and regrouped mentally.

“I was getting kind of frustrated and down on myself after Dallas and Tulsa,” he said. “And took a week off and I was able to kind of reset and just making a commitment to really being clear with my thoughts. And often the hardest thing to do is to shake something off and be positive when things aren't going your way. And so I had a couple of those