Cameron Beckman eagles No. 18, leads Hoag Classic in Newport Beach

Cameron Beckman plays his shot from the third tee during the first round of the Hoag Classic on March 4, 2022.

Associated Press

March 4, 2022 9:46 PM PT

Cameron Beckman eagled the par-five 18th for a seven-under-par 64 and the first-round lead Friday in the PGA Tour Champions’ Hoag Classic.

Beckman also had six birdies and a bogey in cool, breezy conditions at Newport Beach Country Club.

“It was nice,” Beckman said. “I got off to such a good start, birdied the first three. This golf course, you’ve got to be so patient on it, so I was able to kind of just be super patient and I made a couple of nice long putts, and eagle on the last hole was great.”

The 52-year-old Beckman won the 2021 Dick’s Sporting Goods Open for his only senior title after winning three times on the PGA Tour.

Bernhard Langer missed shooting his age by a stroke, matching Stephen Dodd with a 65.

“Initially the forecast was pretty nasty with rain and wind, and we got sunshine and wind for the most part, so we’ll take that any day,” Langer said. “But it was still a little chilly and the wind picked up more so on the back nine.”

Langer, the 2008 winner, won the Chubb Classic this year for his 43rd senior title, two behind Hale Irwin for the tour record.

Ernie Els, the 2020 champion, was at 66 with Jeff Maggert, Darren Clarke, Rocco Mediate, Scott Parel and David Toms.

Viktor Hovland leads by two at Bay Hill

Viktor Hovland hits from the 18th tee during the second round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on March 4, 2022.

Viktor Hovland had the lowest round of the day with a six-under 66 and is off to another great start at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando, Fla. This time, he has a good idea what to expect on the weekend at Bay Hill.

Rory McIlroy got a sneak preview.

Hovland played Friday morning and set the target on a warm day with increasing wind, making seven birdies and a few key pars saves late in the second round. He posted a nine-under 135.

McIlroy played in the afternoon and was poised to catch him until his putter let him down on greens that were getting crisp and slippery. Tied for the lead, McIlroy missed a four-foot par putt and putts from eight feet on the next two holes for birdie and par, and he finished off his 72 by missing a good birdie chance from 15 feet.

He was two behind along with past Bay Hill winner Tyrrell Hatton (68) and Talor Gooch (68), who won his first PGA Tour title in the final official event last year.

Hovland was two strokes out of the lead going into the weekend last year when he closed with rounds of 77-78 and wound up 15 shots behind.

“I kind of try to forget the weekend here last year,” he said. “I played really well the first few days, very similar to how I played so far this year. The course just gets harder and harder every single day, and it started blowing. A few too many bad swings, and I ended up in bad spots and just didn’t really take my medicine.”

No. 1 Jin Young Ko tied for lead at LPGA Singapore

Top-ranked Jin Young Ko moved into a tie for the lead at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore in only her second round since she returned from a three-month break from the LPGA Tour.

Ko shot a five-under 67, including a birdie on the par-five 16th, and was even with Amy Yang (67). They had eight-under totals of 136 on the Sentosa Golf Club’s Tanjong course.

Yang’s round included seven birdies.

Brooke Henderson, Meghan Kang and Atthaya Thitikul were tied for third, two strokes behind, after each shot a 68.