Clay Feagler, Karl Vilips share lead after Round 1 at ATB Classic

SHERWOOD PARK, Alberta – Clay Feagler and Karl Vilips shared the first-round lead of the ATB Classic after carding rounds of 7-under at Northern Bear Golf Club. Argentinian Tommy Cocha and Scotland’s Sandy Scott are T3 after the first round.

Feagler secured exempt status for the season after winning the first event of the season, the Bupa Championship at Tulum. The Pepperdine alum began the season with conditional status, after playing a partial schedule on PGA TOUR Canada in 2023.

The win was the first of his professional career and put him comfortably inside the top 10 of the Fortinet Cup Points List. Feagler never has not dropped further than No. 6 in the Points List and is currently No. 2 behind Matthew Anderson after finishing in solo third at The Beachlands Victoria Open presented by Times Colonist.

Vilips made his professional debut in Victoria last week after a decorated collegiate career at Stanford University. For the first time in his young career, Vilips holds a share of the first-round lead. Playing through rain and inclement weather, Vilips credits his mindset for his play through tough conditions.

“I think it’s more of a mental thing,” Vilips said. “I go out here, I know the weather’s bad but I just try to think of it as a normal day. … Nothing should change too much, and I just try to play a normal round of golf out there.”

Vilips hit 88.89% of Greens in Regulation and made seven birdies without a single blemish on the scorecard, tied for the second most in the field.

The Perth, Australia, native finished No. 10 in the 2024 PGA TOUR University Ranking after winning the 2024 Pac-12 Individual Conference Championship. Vilips defeated fellow PGA TOUR University alum and PGA TOUR Americas member Ryggs Johnston to claim the conference title.

*Due to unplayable course conditions, No. 10 is not being played and the ATB Classic is being contested as four 17-hole stipulated rounds.

About Clay Feagler (T1/7-under)

 

Age: 26
Birthplace: Newport Beach, California
Residence: The Woodlands, Texas
College: Pepperdine University
Fortinet Cup (start of week): Second

• Won Bupa Championship at Tulum; became an exempt member on PGA TOUR Americas for the remainder of the 2024 season and through the Latin America Swing of 2025 with the victory
• Has made 55 career starts across the PGA TOUR, Korn Ferry Tour, PGA TOUR Canada and PGA TOUR Americas
• Played 164 rounds during his collegiate career at Pepperdine, the most in program history
• Tied Pepperdine’s program record for career wins with four
• Secured the winning point against Oklahoma in 2021 to give Pepperdine their first National Championship since 1997
• Feagler, Joe Highsmith and William Mouw won their matches to defeat Oklahoma 3-2 in 2021 National Championship
• One of seven players in Pepperdine history to be named an All-WCC first team selection four times
• Favorite sport outside of golf is basketball
• Favorite movie is "The Dark Knight," and favorite book is The Great Gatsby

About Karl Vilips (T1/7-under)

 

Age: 22
Birthplace: Perth, Australia
Residence: Menlo Park, California
College: Stanford University
Fortinet Cup (start of week): N/A

• Won the individual Pac-12 Conference Championship in 2024, becoming the 12th player in Stanford program history to claim the honor
• Joined Bobby Jones as the youngest winner (15 years old) of the Men’s Southern Amateur
• Won the gold medal in the golf competition at the 2018 Youth Olympics
• Two-time selection to Junior Presidents Cup International Team
• Selected to the All-Pac-12 First Team in 2022-23

Competition notes

 

Course setup: Par 72 / 7,352 yards; Round 1 average: 74.50
Weather: Scattered showers with a high of 61. Wind from the southeast at 9-17 mph with gusts up to 32 mph.  

• Clay Feagler and Karl Vilips share the first-round lead at 7-under. A member of the 2024 PGA TOUR University class holds a share of the lead for the second consecutive week: Gustav Frimodt of Denmark was the solo leader after the first-round in Victoria.
• Clay Feagler and Frederik Kjettrup hit 94.44% of Greens in Regulation, the best mark through the first-round.
• Six countries are represented in the top five and ties: United States (4), Australia (1), Argentina (1), Scotland (1), Japan (1) and Canada (1).
• Argentinian Tommy Cocha (third/6-under) is the low Latin after the first-round: Cocha, a four-time winner on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica, earned his spot in the field via this week’s Monday Qualifier.
• Brendan MacDougall is the low Canadian after the first round (T5/5-under).
• Hole No. 11 – the 447-yard par 4 – was the most challenging hole at Northern Bear Golf Club; averaging a +.40 strokes.