Keith Mitchell sets course record, leads stacked leaderboard at Truist Championship

Truist Championship — Keith Mitchell took full advantage of the soft conditions and a gettable setup at Philadelphia Cricket Club on Thursday, torching the Wissahickon Course for a bogey-free 61 to grab the solo lead after Round 1 of the Truist Championship.

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It’s the best round of his PGA TOUR career, besting his previous low of 62 (which he shot three times). And it wasn’t just a personal best — it shattered the course record on the storied A.W. Tillinghast layout.

Mitchell, in on a sponsor exemption, didn’t even look like a guy trying to prove he belongs. He looked like a guy who might run away with this thing.

Keith Mitchell torches Philly Cricket with course-record 61 at the Truist Championship

Keith Mitchell by the Numbers

61: Career-low round on TOUR, breaking his previous best of 62
4th: Career 18-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR
3rd: First-round lead this season (most on TOUR)
67.10: First-round scoring average in 2025
T18, T12, T2, T18: Finishes in last four starts entering this week
1: PGA TOUR win (2019 Cognizant Classic)

Big Names in the Hunt..

Denny McCarthy (-8, 62): Led the field in SG: Putting (4.478) and posted his lowest opening round of the season. The flatstick was on fire, and McCarthy’s name near the top of a board is never a surprise when that’s the case.
Rickie Fowler (-7, 63): Birdied six of his first seven holes and looked dialed in early. Playing on a sponsor exemption, Fowler is still chasing his first top-10 finish of the season — but this was a great start.
Collin Morikawa (-7, 63): Bogey-free and back in form after a rare missed cut at the Zurich. This was his best opening round of the year and a much-needed bounce-back for the two-time major champ.
Rory McIlroy (-4, 66): The defending champion and four-time winner of this event didn’t have his sharpest stuff but still posted a solid 66. The driver looked good, but a few mistakes — including a three-putt and a miscue at the 15th — held him back. Still, he’s well within striking distance.

Round Notes from the Truist Championship

Mitchell has now held more first-round leads than any player on TOUR this season.
Fowler’s 63 came in his 10th start of the season, where his previous best finish was T21.
Morikawa’s round was his first bogey-free 63 of the season.
McIlroy is playing in his first individual start since the Masters, where he completed the career Grand Slam.

What’s Next

Conditions are expected to get tougher heading into Friday with rain and wind on the horizon. I’m writing this from the media center and it’s pretty rough out there. Philly Cricket is moving tee times around and we’re locked in for an 8 AM start.

Thursday was a shoot out and Philly Cricket doesn’t play very long so wet greens might turn into even lower scores on Friday than what we witnessed yesterday.

Mitchell is in the driver’s seat, but there’s a pack of big names right behind him — and plenty of golf left at Philly Cricket.

Truist Championship: Friday Tee Times adjusted for weather at Philadelphia Cricket Club