Peter Malnati shoots 9-under 61, takes early lead in 8th and final Rocket Classic in Detroit

DETROIT (AP) — Peter Malnati shot a 9-under 61 to take the lead among the early starters Thursday in the first round of the final Rocket Classic .

Malnati, who missed opportunities on the greens to potentially break 60, had seven birdies on the front nine and two birdies on the back in his bogey-free round at the new-look Detroit Golf Club. The course underwent a major renovation, including converting a couple of par-5 holes into par 4s, in an attempt to restore Donald Ross' vision for it more than a century ago and to make it more challenging.

Malnati and many other players still went low at a tournament that has been a birdie fest since 2019, when a Detroit-based mortgage company ended a decade-long drought in Michigan without a PGA Tour stop that dated to Tiger Woods winning the last Buick Open.

The PGA Tour is moving to a new model for 2028, effectively creating two tours and Detroit organizers are taking an exit. The Rocket Classic wasn't interested in continuing to spend $15 million a year to be part of the second tier and didn't want to double the costs to be part of the elite tier.

The 39-year-old Malnati is trying for his first victory since 2024, when the Valspar Championship became his second title on the PGA Tour.

Malnati will have to compete with a field that is stronger than usual, which includes Cameron Young, the No. 3 player in the world, and U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark. Seven of the top 25 in the world ranking, including Xander Schauffele and Hideki Matsuyama, are in the field along with Jackson Koivun , who held off Scottie Scheffler to win last week’s 3M Open in his third start as a pro.

The Rocket Classic and next week's Wyndham Championship are the last two tournaments left before the top 70 advances to the FedEx Cup postseason.

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf