Chris Kirk cards 205-yard ace at No. 14 Thursday at FedEx St. Jude Championship

Chris Kirk is kicking his FedExCup Playoffs campaign into high gear, and he’s doing so in style.

Kirk carded a hole-in-one at TPC Southwind’s par-3 14th hole during the first round of the FedEx St. Jude Championship, playing a high draw from 205 yards that landed 10 feet short-right of the hole, bounced a few times and rolled gently into the center of the cup.

The ace moved Kirk to 7 under for his round, three strokes clear of the field at the time. It marked Kirk’s fourth career ace on TOUR and the first ace of the 2024 FedExCup Playoffs.

Kirk, 39, is no stranger to a FedExCup Playoffs run. The University of Georgia alum finished No. 2 on the 2014 FedExCup, his Playoffs campaign including a victory at the Deutsche Bank Championship at TPC Boston.

Kirk began the FedEx St. Jude Championship at No. 28 on the FedExCup standings, safely inside the critical top-50 cutoff to advance to next week’s BMW Championship and qualify for next season’s eight Signature Events. He’s hovering around the bubble for the top 30 after the BMW that qualify for the TOUR Championship, though, and a strong week in Memphis would go a long way toward securing his spot at East Lake.

Kirk began his season with a victory at The Sentry, his sixth career PGA TOUR title. He’s gearing up to chase a seventh this weekend in Memphis, propelled by a timely ace.