Dicky Pride, Søren Kjeldsen share first-round lead at PGA TOUR Champions Q-School

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Dicky Pride and Denmark’s Søren Kjeldsen each opened with 7-under 64 to set the pace on the first day of the PGA TOUR Champions Qualifying Tournament-Final Stage at TPC Scottsdale's Champions Course on Tuesday.

Pride, who started on No. 10, played his first four holes in 4-under and added a four-birdies-in-five-holes stretch on Nos. 3-7. During the 2024 season, Pride notched one top-10 finish (T7 at the Insperity Invitational) in 25 starts and finished 57th in the Charles Schwab Cup standings to fall short of the final two events of the Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs.

“I’ve been working my buns off,” Pride said of his preparation since his season ended at the Dominion Energy Charity Classic in October. “If I want to have a job, I have to play well. We don’t take that lightly, so we go out and work. I’ve been working for the last month and a half to try and be prepared for this event.”

Over the last four seasons, Pride has made a combined 101 starts on PGA TOUR Champions. His lone victory came at the 2021 Mitsubishi Electric Classic, where he became the 14th player in PGA TOUR Champions history to win as an open qualifier. He remains the last player to accomplish that feat.

Kjeldsen, who turns 50 on May 17, 2025, was the medalist at last month’s Q-School First Stage site at Grand Bear Golf Club in Mississippi. Kjeldsen spent the 2024 season on the DP World Tour, where he made 8-of-20 cuts.

“(PGA TOUR Champions has been on my radar for) the last two or three years,” the 49-year-old Kjeldsen said. “I thought it could be great after 50. The last couple years, it’s been tough playing with guys who hit it 50 yards past me. I started to look at that. Obviously, I know a lot of guys who play over here. Thomas Bjørn has done great. I really wanted to come and join him.”

Kjeldsen, a four-time winner on the DP World Tour, has made 712 starts on that Tour dating back to 1998. His last victory came at the 2015 Amgen Irish Open. In 2016, he finished in the top 10 at a pair of majors, finishing T7 at the Masters and T9 at The Open Championship.

Playing alongside Kjeldsen in the opening round, Sweden’s Freddie Jacobson, who turned 50 on Sept. 26, 2024, carded a bogey-free 65. He made one start on PGA TOUR Champions in 2024, finishing T10 at the Constellation FURYK & FRIENDS.

“For me, the last few years have been mainly taking care of the body,” Jacobson said. “Trying to work out and trying to stay strong. Try to keep the speed going. I think that makes it fun. It’s all about staying healthy.”

Jacobson owns one victory on the PGA TOUR, winning the 2011 Travelers Championship.

Jason Schultz sits in solo fourth after opening with 5-under 66. Seven players are T5 at 4-under.

At the end of four rounds, the top five finishers will be fully exempt into open, full-field events for PGA TOUR Champions in the 2025 season. In addition, players finishing sixth through 30th will be eligible to compete in open qualifiers on PGA TOUR Champions in 2025.

Tee times for Wednesday’s second round will run from 8:30 a.m. to 10:42 a.m. off the Nos. 1 and 10 tees at TPC Scottsdale.