2025 BMW Championship: Robert MacIntyre surges into lead, Scheffler sits 4 shots back after Day 1

Patrick McDonald joins CBS Sports HQ to recap the first day of the 2025 BMW Championship in Owing Mills, Maryland.

[00:00:00] Intro
[00:00:40] Robert MacIntyre surges into lead with 6 birdies
[00:02:55] Scoring held in check Thursday
[00:04:23] Scottie Scheffler sits 4 shots back
[00:06:40] Xander Schauffele (+4) cards disappointing 74

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Second leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs underway and off and running when Bobby Mack six consecutive birdies to close. Robert McIntyre found his footing after a stoppage just north of two hours. A softer course presented itself and McIntyre took advantage. Birdie’s there at 17 and 18, capping off a career best 62 in which McIntyre hold a career-long 195 ft of putts. He sits three clear of Tommy Fleetwood, four of Scotty Sheffller as we are nearly through 18 at the BMW. And for more, we say hello to CBS Sports Golf writer Patrick McDonald. Uh Pat Mack, I thought we were going a different direction here, but it’s Bobby Mack to lead things off. Was looking like uh Bobby Jones to close. Six consecutive birdies, 195 ft of putts, 62 on the card. Obviously a softer golf course presenting itself down the stretch. But where did you see him flip that switch most? You know, he talked about after his round, Muso, how he kind of changed his routine in between rain delays. Normally he would sit around, kind of hang out in the grill, maybe pop back a couple French fries or or whatever, chips as chips as they call them in Scotland, but uh he he said at the US Open he decided to stay warm and we saw him really excel after that rain delay there at Oakmont and he’s like, “Yeah, the locker room there at Caves Valley was a nice temperature for me, a little hotter than the grill. I decided to stay loose in there.” And we saw him really just take off and running after that rain delay. It was kind of reminiscent honestly of the 2021 Masters when Hideki did that in the third round and just went berserk and kind of won his green jacket that way. Obviously not the same, but the run that Bobby Mack went on was really incredible and it felt like that T-OT on 12 kind of kicked him in the right direction, kind of got him focused and the putter just carried the load. I mean, he gained over five strokes on the greens today. All five of those strokes came on those final six holes, hit a dart into 18 as well. He he said that was probably the best he’s ever putted in his career and I think he has a great opportunity tomorrow to kind of keep a good thing going with that quick turnaround of golf course that’s still going to be pretty receptive given that thunderstorm uh this afternoon and he could potentially add to that advantage he has right now. Yeah, it hasn’t been the most fruitful season to this point for Robert McIntyre, but he flashes at the US Open, flashes again at the Open, trying to follow up those two wins from a season ago with something this season. And with all the points up for grabs, it could mean high positioning there heading into East like we know, positioning does not matter, but momentum certainly would be something here if McIntyre can finish off 54 more holes, but so much golf to be played. And you allude to the golf course. I had a scoring average of uh one and a half strokes over par before the stoppage. We landed on just about.7 strokes over par when play concluded here on day one. What was the presentation of Caves Valley and how much teeth were taken out of it with that rain? You know, it looked good early right when especially you compared to 2021 and kind of the scoring bonanza that happened there with Bryson and Canley. Obviously, they switched a couple of the par fives into par fours, which uh is obviously going to make the golf course more difficult to par at least, even though the strokes will add up to the same, but it felt like these greens, everyone was coming off the golf course talking about how severe the slopes are and how pitched these greens are. And that was certainly not the case in 2021 and how slippery a lot of these putts were. And I think that was what was really taken out of this golf course after that rain delay. And we saw it on the greens. It seemed like everyone, not even just Bobby McIntyre, but everyone in that late wave started really filling it up with the putter in hand. And so hopefully it can dry out because I thought this morning wave, Joe, the golf course presented itself quite nicely. There were some pockets of scoring early in the round. The middle stretch is difficult and then you have some scoring opportunities late as well, but with that extra moisture in the grass in the uh greens there at Case Valley certainly took some bite out of it. It definitely did. We have 13 players signing for red numbers here on day one of play. We have another two in red numbers who are not yet in the house as play has concluded uh with the sun setting after that two-hour and some change stoppage. We could go next closest on the leaderboard, but maybe we’ll we’ll leave that one for Sunday if it does present itself once again. And Tommy Fleetwood, I want to go one further to Scotty Sheffller. six birdies on the day, four under to start. But I want to focus on the two bogeies in the middle of his round because he goes back to back bogeies and it was the first time since round three of the US Open that he’s carded backtoback bogeies or worse. I don’t want to make too much of it, but is that maybe where Ted Scott’s absence shows itself in those sorts of moments? He is the bounceback king. Scotty Sheffller, we see a couple in a row, but also comes home with a couple more birdies. What did you make of the day in total for Sheffller? Good start, good finish, bad in the middle. Exactly like you said, right Joe. It’s not often that we see Scotty Sheffller put not one but two squares on a scorecard back to back. And you look at that middle stretch, of course, numbers 9 through 14, he had only one green in regulation. He actually drove the ball really well uh today, that stretch, those six holes, one green. And the one green he did hit there on 13, well, he had to make an eight-footer for par. So I I I think that stretch in particular, Joe, highlights why Scotty Sheffler is so good because that’s a part of the round that you could turn that 66 that he had into a 68 or a 69 and he’s well behind Robert McIntyre. He’d be a touchdown and an extra point behind Bobby McIntyre if he doesn’t get through that stretch. But he’s able to get through that in two over, which is a pretty difficult stretch of the golf course, mind you, to set up a very fast finish, which we know Scotty Sheffller, like every freaking round, he always he always finds just like the little momentum you need to carry over into the next day. He always squeezes that extra half shot out of a round. And that’s exactly what he did when he rolled in that long distance birdie there on 18. So I I really think that middle stretch 9 through4 is what is what is emblematic of why Scotty Shuffler is so great cuz that is when a round can really get away from you. You can turn a 66 into a 68 or a 69 but it turned into a 66 and he’s right in this tournament right again. Yeah. Found a couple from range and also very sound from that 5T in that’s plagued him in the past. Certainly feels like this season moving forward he’s he’s shaken those demons maybe going to that claw grip. how much that’s played into it. We’re we’re not exactly sure, but he is on his stuff right now. And once again, likely headed to East Lake for that top positioning, which again is is not worth anything this year, but momentum best in the world. Scotty Sheoffller, he’s going to be there at the end of this week and likely at the end of next. I I do want to go one negative here on Xander Schoffley because we’ve been saying it for the last month or so now. Ready for a breakout, rounding into form. Starts with a 4 over74 here. Uh, now East Lake is in question for the X-man. About an 8% chance to make it to our final leg of the playoffs. What did you see and what’s the current hindrance that’s still holding him back? I’m I’m there with you, Joe. I mean, he won’t be in the field next week and I’ll be like, “Oh, Xander’s just one week away. He’s just one week away from finding it.” And I I really thought number five in particular is a short par4 out there at K’s Valley that they kind of reconfigured, tried to make it a bit more difficult. And it felt like it was emblematic of Xander Schoffley’s season as a whole where he’s in the middle of the fairway on that hole. He has a wedge in hand. It’s a a very skinny tricky pin to access there on that green. Three tiered green. Lands his wedge pin high. Bounces over the green into the hay. Makes a bogey. And it’s like, all right, he turned a possible birdie opportunity, a surefire par into a bogey. And that’s kind of just what Xander has done this year. Think back to 2024. He was number one in bogey avoidance. Sanders Shoffley was not making bogeies with a wedge in hand and he wasn’t missing putts like these. Uh this currently in 2025 it is his worst putting season of his entire career and it just felt like last year you talk about Scotty Sheffler really shoring up that short range. I don’t know if Xander Schoffley missed a putt inside like 8 ft last year to tell you the truth and he’s just not finding anything right now. That’s the shot on five that I was alluding to, making bogey on that hole, which was really a birdie opportunity for some of these guys. And so, it’s just a little sloppy right now. The margins on the PJ tour are so fine. And we’re seeing putts kind of burn edges that maybe would have lipped in in 2024. And ironically for Xander, the drivers kind of held him back this year, led the field today in terms of total or strokes gained off the tee. It was the iron play where he lost two strokes and the putter where he lost two strokes that held him back today. And unfortunately, if he doesn’t figure something out over these next 54 holes, they’re going to be the last 54 holes of his season. And the last 54 holes between now and Beth Paige, maybe a trip up to Napa, but the Stars and Stripes are going to need his services. We’ll see if he can climb the leaderboard over our final 54 holes. Patrick McDonald going to be with us through it all. Thank you, Pat Mack. And don’t forget, our team has you covered each and every week, five times a week on the Early Wedge. They’ve had you going all season long. So why stop now? Download, subscribe, and enjoy the early wedge.