Cristobal Del Solar shoots 57 for lowest round ever in PGA TOUR-sanctioned history

The new magic number in golf is 57.

Cristobal Del Solar set the PGA TOUR scoring record Thursday with a 13-under 57 in the first round of the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Del Solar made the turn in 8-under 27, tying the low nine-hole score in Korn Ferry Tour history, then added three more birdies and an eagle on his back nine at Country Club de Bogotá-Pacos in Bogota, Colombia, to become the first man to shoot 57 in any PGA TOUR-sanctioned event.

“It was crazy, honestly I didn’t even know what I shot,” Del Solar said. “I knew I was playing, obviously, great… Everything just kept happening. Everything just clicked.”

Del Solar made par on the final three holes to clinch the record and best Jim Furyk and Stephan Jaeger, who previously held the record for the lowest rounds in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned event. Jaeger was the first to do it, with a 58 in the first round of the 2016 Ellie Mae Classic on the Korn Ferry Tour. Remarkably, Furyk did it the following week on the PGA TOUR, shooting 58 in the final round of the Travelers Championship.

Del Solar now holds the record alone. He took advantage of the gettable Country Club de Bogota-Pacos, a par-70 measuring 6,254 yards at nearly 9,000 feet of elevation. Del Solar made six birdies and an eagle on his opening nine to make the turn in 8-under. He was 2-under through four holes – making birdies on Nos. 1 and 3 – before the historic round kicked into gear. Del Solar made four straight birdies and capped off his front nine with an eagle on the 330-year par-4 ninth hole. Del Solar called his drive on the ninth, which landed within 15 feet of the hole, his best shot of the day. He finished one shot behind the nine-hole PGA TOUR scoring record of 26, set by Corey Pavin on Brown Deer Park's front nine in the 2006 U.S. Bank Championship.

“The course was definitely set up to shoot a very low score,” said Del Solar, adding the longest club he had into a green all day was a 6-iron. “Now when you go into a course like this, you don’t think, ‘OK, I’m going to shoot 57.’ You just go out there like ‘OK, let’s do my best’… you still got to do it, obviously.”

Del Solar continued his pace on the back nine with a birdie on the par-4 10th, an eagle on the par-5 12th and birdies on Nos. 14 and 15. He made three pars coming in, including on two of the course's most challenging holes. The par-3 17th and par-4 18th were tied for the second-hardest holes when Del Solar finished his round. Though Del Solar couldn’t help but think he left a few out there, including on the final hole when his short birdie putt lipped out.

“I don’t know if I was nervous,” he said. “I was anxious. I wanted to keep making more birdies.”

Del Solar, 30, opened the season with a solo fourth-place finish at The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic at Sandals Emerald Bay. A week ago, he finished T27 in The Panama Championship and was 14th in the Korn Ferry Tour Points List ahead of the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard.

Del Solar is in his second year on the Korn Ferry Tour. A Florida State alum, Del Solar graduated and turned pro in 2017. He spent four years on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica and PGA TOUR Canada before earning his Korn Ferry Tour card ahead of the 2022-23 season. He finished 58th in the Korn Ferry Tour Points List in 2023.

Now, Del Solar holds a revered piece of golf history as Mr. 57. He’s aiming to leave Colombia as a champion, too. He’ll need three solid more rounds for that.

“Hopefully by Sunday I’ve also got amazing news,” he said.