Rio Grande, Puerto Rico – FedExCup Points: 300 (winner) Grand Reserve Golf Club Par/Yards: 36-36—72/7,506 Purse: $4 million/$720,000 (winner)
First-Round Notes – Thursday, March 5, 2026
Weather: Partly cloudy with possible showers. High of 84. Wind ENE 10-20 mph, with gusts up to 30 mph.
First-Round Leaderboard
| Pos. | Player | R1 |
| 1 | Chandler Blanchet | 64 (-8) |
| 2 | Gordon Sargent | 65 (-7) |
| 3 | Jesper Svensson | 67 (-5) |
| T4 | Six Players Tied | 68 (-4) |
Chandler Blanchet (T1/-8)
• PGA TOUR rookie cards an 8-under 64 in the first round to set his career-low 18-hole score on TOUR (previous best: 66/R1/2022 Butterfield Bermuda Championship)
• Holds first 18-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR (previous best 18-hole position: T20/2026 Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches /finished MC)
• Making his ninth career start on TOUR and sixth start this season (MC/Sony Open in Hawaii, MC/The American Express, MC/Farmers Insurance Open, MC/WM Phoenix Open, MC/Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches)
• Making his Puerto Rico Open debut and leads the field in birdies (9); nine birdies marks his career-high birdies posted in a round on TOUR (previous best: 6, R1/2022 Butterfield Bermuda Championship)
• Enters the week at No. 141 in the Official World Golf Ranking
• Two-time Korn Ferry Tour winner (2025 Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Hiland Dairy Foods, 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance) finished No. 2 in the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List to secure PGA TOUR membership for 2026 season
Miscellaneous Notes
• The Puerto Rico Open marks the 18-year anniversary since the first playing of the event in 2008 at Grand Reserve Golf Club in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico; home to 11 first-time winners, notably Tony Finau (2016), Viktor Hovland (2020) and Nico Echavarria (2023)
• The winner will receive 300 FedExCup points, a two-year exemption on the PGA TOUR and an invitation to next week’s PLAYERS Championship (if not previously eligible)
• Gordon Sargent (2nd/-7) cards a 7-under 65, setting his career-low 18-hole score on TOUR (previous best: 66, R2/2025 Rocket Classic/finished T67, R4/2025 ISCO Championship/finished T24); holds career best 18-hole position on TOUR (previous: T10/2025 ISCO Championship)
• Sweden native Jesper Svensson (3rd/-5) opens with a bogey-free 5-under 67, one shy of his best 18-hole score on TOUR this season (best: 66/R3/The American Express/MC)
• 18-year-old Blades Brown (T10/-3) posts a 3-under 69, marking his 16th round in the 60s in 34 career rounds on TOUR; has one top-25 finish on TOUR this season in two starts (T18/The American Express, MC/Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches) • PGA TOUR winner and Puerto Rico native Rafael Campos (T21/-2) opens with a 2-under 70; making his 16th start at the Puerto Rico Open, the most of any player at the event (best finish: T3/2021)
• Making his PGA TOUR debut as a sponsor exemption, John Daly II (T21/-2) cards a 2-under 70; has made one career start in a TOUR-sanctioned event as an amateur (2024 Compliance Solutions Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour/MC) • 17-year-old and two-time AJGA Rolex Junior Player of the Year Miles Russell (T39/-1) posts a 1-under 71 in the first round; sponsor exemption seeks first made cut on TOUR in fifth career start (best finish in a TOUR-sanctioned event: T20/2024 LECOM Suncoast Classic on Korn Ferry Tour) • First-round scores for players from Puerto Rico: Rafael Campos (70/Guaynabo), Chris Nido (70/San Juan), Reinaldo Simoni (76/Dorado), Evan Pena (79/Toa Alta)
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