The pursuit of golfers to always play better and post lower scores have some limitations and scoring lower than 60, is regarded as one of the most difficult tasks.
The PGA tour is played on some of the most difficult golf courses and is set up to test the skills of top professionals in a variety of weather conditions.
What is the best round in PGA Tour history?
Who shot the lowest round of golf ever in a PGA Tour event?
Only twelve golfers have broken 60 on the PGA Tour with Jim Furyk scoring the best 18-hole golf score to date when he scored 58 at the 2016 Travelers Championship for a 12 under-par score.
This is the current PGA record score. The round included one eagle, 10 birdies, and 7 pars.
📢 Need To Know: He achieved this feat during the final round of the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands which is a par 70. Unfortunately, this was not enough to see him win the tournament and he ended in fifth place.
Jim Furyk is the only golfer to play more than one sub-60 round which also includes a 59 at the par 71 Conway Farms Golf Club at the 2013 BMW Championship.
Watch highlights of his 58 round below.
Were all these scores playing 72 holes?
Not all sub 60 scores were achieved on par 72 courses. All of the scores were achieved in PGA Tour events covering 72 holes.
Only four of the twelve sub-60 rounds were achieved on par 72 courses, 4 rounds on par 70 courses.
List of 59’s in PGA Tour History
Here is a list of players that achieved a core of 59, when they did it, and what the course par was.
- Scottie Scheffler was the latest to play a sub-60 round when he scored an outward loop of 30 and an inward loop of 29 at the 2020 TPC Boston during the second round of the Northern Trust Tournament which was part of the 2020 FedEx Cup Playoffs. The round included twelve birdies, six on each loop.
- Kevin Chappell scored two loops of 28 and 31 at TPC Old White TPC while playing the second round of the Military Tribute at The Greenbrier 2019. His round consisted of eleven birdies, including nine consecutive birdies, and 7 pars.
- Brandt Snedeker also scored 59 in the first round of the 2018 Wyndham Championship with loops of 32 and 27 at the par 70 Sedgefield CC. He went on to win the tournament. His score of 11 under included ten birdies, one eagle, one bogey, and 6 pars. This was also the third time that a golfer scored below sixty with a bogey on the card.
- Adam Hadwin scored loops of 29 and 30 at the par 72 La Quinta CC in the third round of the 2017 CareerBuilder Challenge. The round consisted of thirteen birdies, including six in a row on the front and five consecutive birdies on the inward loop. He had to make a 4-foot par putt on the 18th hole for his 59.
- Justin Thomas achieved his 59 score during the first round of the 2017 Sony Open at the par 70 Waialae CC with an outward loop of 29 and an inward loop of 30. This enabled him to stay at the front of the chasing pack and win the tournament. The round consisted of two eagles, eight birdies, one bogey, and 7 pars.
- Jim Furyk’s first sub-60 round was scored at the pa 71 Conway Farms GC during the second round of the 2013 BMW Championship when he scored one eagle, eleven birdies, one bogey, and 5 pars.
- Stuart Appleby scored 59 during the last round of the 2010 Greenbrier Classic at the par 70 TPC Old White course with an outward loop of 28 and an inward loop of 31. He went on to win this tournament by sinking an 11-foot birdie putt on the 18th to win by one shot. This round included one eagle, nine birdies, and eight pars.
- Paul Goydos scored his 59 during the first round of the 2010 John Deere Classic at the par 70 TPC Deere Run. He scored an outward loop of 31 and returned a 28 on the inward loop. He had to sink a 7-foot putt birdie putt on the 18th hole to stay below 60. The round included twelve birdies and 6 pars.
- David Duval with an outward loop of 31 and an inward loop of 28 at the final round of the 1999 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic played at the par 72 PGA West Palmer Course ended up as the winner of the tournament. The round included one eagle, eleven birdies, and six pars.
- Chip Beck achieved his 59 during the third round at the 1991 Las Vegas Invitational played at the par 72 Sunrise GC with an outward loop of 30 and returning with a 29 on the inward loop. He scored thirteen birdies.
- Al Geiberger was the first professional golfer to break 60 in a PGA Tour event at the second round of the 1977 Memphis Classic played at the par 72 Colonial CC. The loops of 29 on the outward loop and 30 on the inward loop enabled him to win the tournament. This round included one eagle, eleven birdies, and six pars.
Who Got the First Sub-60 Score In PGA History?
Al Geiberger was the first golfer to score a sub-60 round in the 1977 Memphis Classic Tournament at the Colonial CC. Al went on to win the tournament thanks to this impressive feat.
Considering Course Difficulty/ Strokes Gained What Could Be Considered the Greatest Round Ever?
Shooting the lowest score does not necessarily make it the greatest round of golf ever. To score on a par 72 is similar to shooting a sub-60 round on a par 71 or par 70 course.
The biggest difference between the different pars on the courses is the number of par 5’s on the course.
📋 Keep in mind: Par 5’s are statistically easier to birdie than par 4s therefore you may score more birdies on a par 72 course but still score similarly than on a lower par course.
Irishman David Carey shot a 57 in 2019 on the Alps Tour but the tournament was played on a par 68 course making the feat less impressive than it would have been on a par 72 course.
Shooting a sub-60 score in a major tournament will overshadow any sub-60 score on a course such as Old White TPC, which is the first PGA Tour course to have witnessed two 59s.
Weather conditions and course setup can also play a significant role in the scoring on the day.
A better way to determine the quality of the individual round is to compare it to the total strokes gained by the golfer shooting the sub-60 round.
Stats show that Jim Furyk gained 12.086 strokes on the field when he score his 59 in the 2013 BMW Championship, the best of the sub-60 rounds.
Scoring his record score of 58 at the 2016 Travelers Championship Furyk only gained 10.658 strokes on the field.
Other than Jim Furyk, only Paul Goydos features in the top 10 strokes gained scores when scoring sub-60. That was at the John Deere Classic when he gained 10.532 shots on the field.
From the statistics, it can be seen that Jim Furyk’s 59 is rated the best round of all time eclipsing the 58 record score.
What is Tiger Woods’s lowest round ever?
Tiger Woods is arguably the greatest golfer of all time, but he has never been able to play a sub-60 round. His best score on the PGA Tour is 61 which he achieved on four occasions.
The first round of the 1999 Byron Nelson Classic, the second round of the 2000 WGC-NEC Invitational, the second round of the 2005 Buick Open, and the second round of the 2013 WGC Bridgestone Invitational.
Who Holds the Lowest Score Over 9 Holes?
Corey Pavin, an American Professional golfer, holds the record for the lowest score over nine holes on the PGA Tour.
He achieved this feat by scoring 26 shots during the front nine during the first round of the 2006 U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee. Corey went on to win the tournament by 2 strokes.
Has Anyone Got Lower Than A 58 Golf Score?
The lowest round of golf ever recorded is Rhein Gibson’s 55 scored on 12, 2012 at the par 71 River Oaks Golf Club in Edmond, Oklahoma.
His round consisted of twelve birdies, two eagles, and 4 pars.
Other notable golfers who scored lower than 58 include
- Irishman David Carey shot a 57 in 2019 on the Alps Tour.
- College golfer Alex Ross who shot a 57 at the Dogwood Invitational in June 2019
- Louis Oosthuizen, 2010 British Open champion, is reported to have played 57 at Mossel Bay Golf Club in December 2002 at the age of 20. It is claimed that he made two eagles and 11 birdies in making the score.
FAQs
Has there ever been a perfect round of golf?
No, there has never been a perfect round of golf. A perfect round, also known as a “double eagle” or “albatross,” involves completing a course with 18 holes in just 18 strokes, which is considered impossible. The lowest score ever recorded in a professional golf tournament is 58, accomplished by Jim Furyk in 2016.
Has anyone aced a par 4?
Yes, there has been only one hole-in-one on a par 4 in PGA Tour history. The golfer who achieved this feat was Andrew Magee at the 2001 WM Phoenix Open.
