Robert MacIntyre birdies last six holes to seize BMW Championship lead

OWINGS MILLS:Robert MacIntyre of Scotland birdied his last six holes to blow past Scottie Scheffler and grab the first-round lead of the BMW Championship on Thursday in Owings Mills, Md.

MacIntyre posted an 8-under-par 62 at Caves Valley Golf Club, which also hosted this tournament in 2021 and produced a plethora of low scores, including a 27-under winning mark for Patrick Cantlay.

Nobody went lower than MacIntyre to open this year’s edition. He will take a three-stroke lead over Englishman Tommy Fleetwood into Friday. Scheffler (4-under 66) is alone in third after taking the lead into the clubhouse in the day.

MacIntyre entered the week 20th in the FedEx Cup standings. The top 30 after Sunday qualify for next week’s Tour Championship, and a strong finish in Maryland would take MacIntyre far away from that bubble.

The 29-year-old said he didn’t believe a 62 was likely for anyone Thursday.

“There’s chances. If you drive the ball well, it does give you chances,” MacIntyre said. .”.. I’m sure the next couple of days won’t be as easy.”

MacIntyre birdied the 11th hole but bogeyed the 12th to sit at 2 under for his round Thursday afternoon. His remarkable birdie run began with a 66-foot putt at the par-3 13th and a 40-footer at No. 14.

In fact, the first five birdies of that streak all came from at least 11 feet out. At No. 18, he knocked his approach shot to inside 5 feet for the exclamation point.

“Probably the last six holes is probably as good as I’ve ever putted in a stretch of holes,” said MacIntyre, whose big moment this year was a runner-up finish at the US Open. “Just so consistent.”

Fleetwood’s bogey-free 65 included a long putt of his own, a nearly 34-foot left-to-righter on the final hole to move past