Taylor Pendrith played all five sessions last month for the International team in a losing effort at the Presidents Cup. He went 0-2 in four-ball, 2-0 in foursomes and lost his singles match, 3 and 1, against Patrick Cantlay.
Then the 33-year-old Canadian headed back to his home in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. A lot of PGA Tour pros live in Florida because of the weather, but this year the hurricane season has been rather brutal. Hurricanes Helene and Milton pounded the state, as well as other places, over the past three weeks.
Pendrith essentially hasn’t played much since the Presidents Cup ended September 29.
“I think I played maybe three times since the Presidents Cup, and then was planning on practicing and everything was closed,” he said Thursday at the Shriners Children’s Open, where he opened with a 10-under 61. “So my coach was here, Derek [Ingram], on Monday and Tuesday, and we got a lot of good work in. For me, I feel rested and excited to play.”
Rested? Excited? He absolutely blitzed TPC Summerlin during the first round making 10 birdies and no bogeys. He started on the 10th hole and made birdies on Nos. 11, 12 and 13, then two more on 15 and 16 to turn in 31. Over the final nine holes he reeled off birdies on Nos. 1, 3, 4, 6 and 7 and made a disappointing par on the par-5 ninth hole, his last, when he hit his approach into a greenside bunker and failed to get up and down.
A career low-tying round for @TaylorPendrith!
He sits atop the leaderboard early @ShrinersOpen. pic.twitter.com/4cuD2rfA85
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 17, 2024
While a 61 rarely can be deemed easy, this one appeared to be. The longest putt Pendrith made all day was from 12 feet, six inches and that was on the 11th hole when he made his first birdie. He made one from 10 feet on the third hole but all the others were much shorter than that. On the par-4 fourth hole, Pendrith hit his wedge from 100 yards to nine inches.
“I thought I would be a little bit more rusty than that,” he said. “You know, obviously thrilled and yeah, just got to keep getting back into the rhythm of things and the next few days. Yeah, feel good.”
Pendrith missed six of his first nine cuts of the year then tied for 11th place at the Corales Puntacana Championship and won his first PGA Tour event, the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, the following week. He played well the rest of the season and ended tied for 14th in FedEx Cup standings, assuring that he’ll be in all the big events next year on tour.
“The confidence level is up for sure I think,” Pendrith said. “Was able to win last year, this year, and have some really solid finishes at some big events, and that gives you a lot of confidence.
Taylor Pendrith is feelin' lucky in Vegas today 💪
Another birdie for the solo leader sitting -8 @ShrinersOpen pic.twitter.com/KNXZ58ssSc
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 17, 2024
“I would say my putting has improved the most. It’s the biggest improvement in my game from the last couple seasons. I’ve been able to roll in some nice putts. Just seeing them go in gives you more confidence.”
Wind is forecast to pick up considerably on Friday, meaning Pendrith’s three-shot lead, of course, is not remotely safe.
“Obviously it’s just Day 1, but I really like this golf course,” he said. “I’ve had some nice low rounds here in the past. Had a good finish last year, so I’ve got good vibes out here and really like the golf course and the layout.
“The conditions are going to get tricky I think the next day and a half. Just got to grind through that and, yeah, hopefully just grind it out and see what happens.”