Max Greyserman continued his impressive run in the event now known as the Baycurrent Classic, with the American putting himself at the top of the leaderboard after the first round in Yokohama.
Max Greyserman managed to finish tied for second in his debut in the event last year. Greyserman showed how impressive his all-round game had become, with what proved to be his third runner-up finish in five starts.
And while the venue and tournament name may be different this year, Greyserman has seemingly picked up where he left off in Thursday’s round at the Baycurrent Classic.
He posted a four under par round of 67 to join Bud Cauley and Brian Campbell at the top of the leaderboard.
Max Greyserman outlines the difference between American and Japanese fans after his first round at the Baycurrent Classic
Clearly, Greyserman enjoys playing in the Land of the Rising Sun. And following his opening round, he outlined the big difference between the Japanese fans and the American crowds that he is used to.
“I love playing in Japan. It’s a great culture, respectful people, respectful fans. In the U.S. I don’t usually get claps when I hit it to 30 feet and here I do. I feel like they maybe look at golf more of like an art form or they’re trying to learn, especially when I’m on the range and stuff I see people trying to imitate my swing and stuff like that whereas in the U.S. it’s more of like an entertainment product. So it’s fun being over here. Good food too, I’m not going to complain about that,” he said.
His views were echoed by both Sahith Theegala and one of Greyserman’s co-leaders, with the pair obviously appreciating the opportunity to play in the Far East.
“It’s awesome. The crowds and the spectators are just some of the best in the world,” Brian Campbell explained. “They truly love golf, they love supporting, they’re always there to cheer you on when you make a good save or anything. It’s been awesome and I can’t wait to explore a little more.”
Theegala said: “Yeah, it’s got to be one of my favorite events of the year. I just love the Japanese people and the fans, I feel so welcomed every year. It’s my favorite food in the world, I just love Japanese food. I could eat it just every single day. So just that combination. Most respectful fans, see the same people every year in the crowd, which is awesome.
“It’s such a treat honestly coming out and playing. We don’t do a lot of international stuff so this is one that’s always just super, super fun. Just doesn’t feel like any stress. Yeah, it’s just a very unique tournament and I love playing in front of the Japanese fans.”
Yokohama Country Club praised after the first round of the Baycurrent Classic
The new venue certainly seemed to provide a stern test to the field. The likes of Gary Woodland and Billy Horschel find themselves at six over par, while Danny Walker – who finished third at the Sanderson Farms Championship just last week – opened up with an 80.
Just a handful of players managed to keep a bogey off their cards, while Greyserman’s only dropped shot of the day came at the par four 12th.
And the 30-year-old explained why he is such a big admirer of Yokohama after playing it competitively for the first time.
“Yeah, I really like the golf course. It’s different than last year’s golf course. Last year it was a more straightforward test, kind of narrow, can you put the ball in play, can you put it on the green, kind of flat greens, and this golf course is very much like maybe Northeast golf, lot of slope on the golf course, around the greens, on the greens. So a lot of runoffs, a lot of runoffs, bunkers, fairway runoffs,” he said.
“I enjoy playing that style of golf maybe like a Pinehurst No. 2 type of golf where everything’s shaved around the greens. I think it’s maybe more fun to play and there’s more creativity. It’s kind of like linksy golf around the greens a little bit. Yeah, it’s a fun test, a different test. I think it might be one of the best courses we play all year to be honest.”
It does appear unlikely that anyone is going to be able to pull away from the field over the next three days. But Greyserman will surely feel that if he can limit the number of mistakes he makes, he has a phenomenal opportunity to secure a first PGA Tour victory this week.
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