Scottie Scheffler in five-way tie for lead after first round of Hero World Challenge

Scottie Scheffler is in a five-way tie for the lead after the first round of the Hero World Challenge.

Scheffler has returned to competition for the first time in two months and remains in good form. Even with a bogey on the final hole, he shot 66.

Scheffler was tied at a six-under par with US Open champion JJ Spaun, Sepp Straka, Wyndham Clark and Akshay Bhatia after the first day at Albany Golf Club in New Providence, Bahamas.

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The world's No 1 player wasn't the only one who'd taken plenty of time off. Straka also hadn't played since the Ryder Cup at the end of September.

The Hero World Challenge has a 20-man field, an end-of-the-year holiday event that top players often use as the first step toward getting ready for next year. Scheffler is coming off a six-win season that included two majors and nothing worse than a tie for eighth in his last 15 tournaments.

Scheffler had birdies on four of the six scoring holes - four par 5s and two reachable par 4s. His only lapse was a chip that ran across and over the 18th green.

"I did some good stuff," Scheffler said. "I felt like I could have shot a good amount lower. There's always a little bit of a rust. Once you get into competition, I don't really think about that stuff."

Bhatia and Straka played bogey-free. Clark, Scheffler and Spaun each reached 7 under at one point until dropping a shot late in the round. Clark was at 7 under going to the par-5 15th, but a poor tee shot led to bogey. Spaun bogeyed the 18th from a fairway bunker.

Clark and Bhatia each holed bunker shots for eagle on the reachable par-4 seventh.

All but four players broke par in the opening round, with newcomer Chris Gotterup at 74 and Robert MacIntyre at 73.

Jordan Spieth, who received a sponsor exemption, was playing for the first time since the FedEx St. Jude Championship to start the postseason and opened with a 72. He ran off three straight birdies on the front nine, but none over the last 11 while struggling with his chipping and at times his putting.

He was alongside Scheffler, who is going after his third straight title in the Hero World Challenge. Dating to last year, Scheffler went 41 consecutive holes without a bogey until missing the 18th green and hitting his chip too hard.

Watch the Hero World Challenge on Sky Sports Golf from 6.30pm on Friday.

(c) Sky Sports 2025: Scottie Scheffler in five-way tie for lead after first round of Hero World Challenge