By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
HOUSTON – Shreveport native Sam Burns had his recently erratic game in gear Thursday, carding a five-under 65 to take the early lead before finishing the opening round of the Texas Children’s Houston Open in a three-way tie for third, two shots off the pace.
Burns trails only Englishman Paul Waring (7-under 63) and former U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland (6-under 64) entering the second round. After an early tee time Thursday, the Calvary Baptist graduate and former LSU All-American will play in the afternoon today.
Paired with world No. 5 Chris Gotterup, who has won the Sony Open and the WM Phoenix Open already this season, and 13-time tour winner and 2015 PGA champ Jason Day, Burns tees off today at 12:53. Coverage airs on ESPN+ all day and Golf Channel coverage begins at 2 o’clock.
Burns carded seven birdies Thursday at Memorial Park Golf Course, including on three of his last four holes, maintaining momentum from a 13th-place tie in his last start at the Players two weeks ago. He did not play last week at the Valspar, which he won in 2021 and 2022.
“My game felt good coming into the week,” Burns said. “Today was just kind of trying to be patient and take my chances when I had them. With some of those hole locations, it was difficult to get the ball close at times, so just kind of trying to be patient out there and rely on my putter as much as I could.”
He has three top 27 finishes, including a sixth-place tie at the AT&T Pebble Beach, but has missed the cut in his other three tournaments this year. He is gearing up for The Masters in three weeks and is hoping to be fit to shine.
“I think for me right now, just trying to get healthy,” Burns said without citing a specific problem. “Try to make sure my body’s feeling good and trying to kind of build on that.”
Burns, 29, coming off a Ryder Cup appearance last season, is looking for his first PGA Tour win since 2023, although he had late final day leads last year three times, most notably at the Canadian Open and the U.S. Open. Burns stands 35th in the early FedEx Cup standings and 33rd in the Official World Golf Rankings.
After leading the tour in strokes gained putting last season, he sits 14th in that stat for the season and sixth in the field this week.
Among other prominent players in the tournament’s top 20 starting today are Rickie Fowler, Tony Finau, and Adam Scott. Scottie Scheffler withdrew early this week to return home to Dallas for the anticipated birth of his second child. Five-time major champion Brooks Koepka, struggling in his return from the LIV circuit, shot 5-over 75 Thursday.
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