Joaquin Niemann got off to a fantastic start at the CJ Cup Thursday, plotting his way around The Summit Club for a 5-under 67. The 22-year-old Chilean, despite back-to-back runner-up finishes in Hawaii early last season, is still looking for his second PGA Tour title (2020 Military Tribute at Greenbrier).
Niemann, playing alongside Jason Day and Charley Hoffman, went off early on Friday, teeing it up just before 8 a.m. local time. Maybe he was stiff, maybe he was half-asleep, but his first drive was a wide miss into the desert.
What he did next even surprised his playing partners.
1⃣ Shanked drive
2⃣ Take an unplayable
3⃣ Hole out from adjacent fairwayUnbelievable start by @joaconiemann
pic.twitter.com/zCr7ywlyyE
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 15, 2021
Staring down a huge number to start his day, Niemann took an unplayable. He couldn’t see the green, more than likely didn’t have a great number to the flag, but all that didn’t matter.
Buckets.
As of noon ET, Niemann currently sits T-9, seven shots behind a red-hot Keith Mitchell.