Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry both celebrated holes-in-one to help them along to strong starts at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
The Irish pair both sit on six under par, with McIlroy's ace coming at the 15th at Spyglass Hill and Lowry finding the hole at the signature seventh on the Pebble Beach Golf Links.
The 80-player field is spending one day at each course before moving to Pebble Beach for the weekend.
McIlroy and Lowry are two shots behind first-round leader Russell Henley, who posted a brilliant 64 on the Spyglass Hill course.
They resume at 5.01pm (Lowry) and 5.53pm (McIlroy) Irish time today.
McIlroy’s hole-in-one was the third of his career after doing likewise at the 2015 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and the 2022 Travelers Championship.
Playing downhill and just 119 yards to the pin, the four-time major champion flew a wedge shot into the green and his ball could be heard hitting the flagstick before disappearing into the hole without a bounce.
119 yards ➡️ IN!
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 30, 2025
For the second time in his career, @McIlroyRory has an ace on the PGA TOUR! pic.twitter.com/XywFx6oSek
"It's such an elevated tee that the ball's in the air and you know it's online but you don't know whether to say, 'go!' or 'sit!' or 'spin,' or 'release'," McIlroy said afterwards.
"You're looking at it and you're watching where it might land on the green and the thing just disappears.
"It was a good swing, a good wedge shot and it was obviously a nice little moment."
He added birdies on three of his final four holes to get to six under.
Lowry's magical moment came at one of golf's most famous holes, and he has made a habit of managing them at well-known courses, having also aced at Augusta in 2016 and TPC Sawgrass in 2022.
Lowry's tee shot took two hops on the green before rolling directly in the cup.
AN ACE FOR THE LAD!@ShaneLowryGolf with an ace on one of the most iconic holes in golf @ATTProAm. pic.twitter.com/i7cyvGxcVw
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 30, 2025
"It is an easy shot, but you still need to play it," the 37-year-old said. "I wanted to flight it down, chase it up the green to get it up there somewhere close to the hole.
"It came out lovely, just left of the hole, which is where you need to pitch if you want to get it real close.
"The big bounce was perfect and spun straight into the hole. I know I'm pretty good at times (hole in ones), a bit of luck every now and then is helpful too."
Waterford’s Seamus Power is in a tie for 37th on three under.
World number one Scottie Scheffler opened his 2025 season with a five-under 67 at Spyglass Hill. He was sidelined for about four weeks after injuring his hand while cooking over the Christmas break.
Additional reporting: Reuters
