Richy Werenski leads The Ascendant presented by Blue with first-round 63

PGA TOUR and Korn Ferry Tour winner Richy Werenski opened in 9-under 63 to tie the 18-hole tournament scoring record and TPC Colorado course record at The Ascendant presented by Blue. This is the first 18-hole lead/co-lead in a Korn Ferry Tour event. University of Colorado alum Jeremy Paul, winner of the 2024 season-opening The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic at Sandals Emerald Bay, sits three strokes off the lead following a bogey-free 6-under 66. Karl Vilips, the No. 10 finisher in the 2024 PGA TOUR University Ranking and a sponsor exemption this week,opens his Korn Ferry Tour debut with a 5-under 67 – despite a double bogey at the par-3 eighth – and sits four strokes off the lead. Open qualifier Timmy Crawford, who turned professional this summer after four seasons at Loyola University Chicago and a fifth season at the University of Illinois, cards a 6-under 66 in his first PGA TOUR-sanctioned round.

Charting the leader

Richy Werenski (first/9-under)

• Opens in 9-under 63 to tie the 18-hole tournament scoring record and TPC Colorado course record previously established by Chase Johnson (2020/R4), Greyson Sigg (2020/R4) and Taylor Moore (2021/R1)
• Holds his first 18-hole lead/co-lead in a Korn Ferry Tour event, with his previous career-high 18-hole position being T2/2016 Mexico Championship
• Prior to Thursday, season-high first-round position in 11 Korn Ferry Tour starts this year was T13/Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS/finished T16
• Marks his third round of 63 or better on the Korn Ferry Tour in what is his 58th career start (62/2024 Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard/R2; 63/2015 Visit Knoxville Open/R3)
• PGA TOUR winner (2020 Barracuda Championship) and Korn Ferry Tour winner (2016 BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX)
• Withdrew from this week’s ISCO Championship on the PGA TOUR to make his tournament debut at The Ascendant presented by Blue
• Finished No. 158 in the 2022-23 FedExCup Fall, relegating him to conditional status on both the PGA TOUR and Korn Ferry Tour this season
• Played the last seven seasons on the PGA TOUR, where he earned FedExCup Playoffs berths in each of his first five seasons (2016-17, 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21) and finished a career-high 39th in the 2019-20 FedExCup standings
• Graduated from the Korn Ferry Tour upon conclusion of the 2016 season; he previously finished 79th in the 2015 Korn Ferry Tour standings as a rookie
• Turned professional in 2014 after four seasons at Georgia Tech (2010-14)

Quotables

Richy Werenski on the decision to play The Ascendant instead of the ISCO Championship on the PGA TOUR: “It was a tough decision. I played last week at John Deere (Classic) and I was just thinking about all week, what I was going to do the rest of the year because I was in Kentucky (ISCO Championship) and Barracuda (Championship), so kind of just figured I'd probably be kicking myself if I didn't play out here. I've got a good chance to get a card this year.”

Werenski on playing both the PGA TOUR and Korn Ferry Tour this season: “It's a pretty bad spot to be. It's hard because you don't know if you're going to get in out on the big tour and if you do, it's last minute and then you've got to make a decision. It's like it almost would be easier if I had no status on that tour and I just knew I had to play out here. It's new for me. It's the first time I've ever had to deal with it. There's always guys who deal with this. For me it's been tough, but I just kind of made the decision I'm going to stick it out out here and give it my all out on this tour.”

Additional player notes

• Brian Campbell (T2/8-under), who stands No. 14 on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, matches his season-high 18-hole position (T2/Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard/finished second).
• Thomas Walsh (T2/8-under), who stands No. 47 on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, ties his lowest round of the season (Astara Chile Classic/R2) and sits inside the top five after the first round for the fourth time this season (T1/Astara Chile Classic presented by Scotiabank/finished T11; first/Compliance Solutions Championship/finished T23; T4/Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard/finished T3).
• Matt McCarty (T4/7-under), who ranks 27th on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, stands inside the top five after the first round for the third time this season (T3/Visa Argentina Open presented by Macro/finished T26; T4/BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX/finished T12).
• Korn Ferry Tour winner Rick Lamb (T4/7 under) stands higher than T14 after the first round of a Korn Ferry Tour event for the first time since he held he outright lead at the 2021 Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS (finished T38); Lamb is seeking his first top-25 on Tour since the 2021 Visit Knoxville Open/T22.