5 things we learned at the first round of 2022 Fortinet Championship

NAPA, Calif. – When Justin Lower chipped in for the second time of the day at Silverado Resort’s North Course, his new caddie, Chad Gonzales, turned to the other caddies in his threesome and said, “Time to go buy a lottery ticket.”

It was that type of day for Lower, who holed out on Nos. 5 and 7 en route to making birdie on the half the holes and opening a three-stroke lead when was play was suspended due to darkness in the first round of the Fortinet Championship.

Lower was the hard-luck loser, who finished 126^th in the FedEx Cup regular season standings and gave an emotional interview at the Wyndham Championship, the final regular-season event.

That meant that Lower had to go back and play in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals to try to earn his card back. He had competed in the first two events and likely had locked up his Tour card for the new season when several players defected to LIV Golf and Lower was suddenly full-exempt for the coming season for the first time in his career.

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“It’s been kind of a whirlwind,” he said. “It sucked but it turned out for the better. … I’m just happy to be here.”

And taking advantage of his opportunity he did. Lower’s 63 was a career low for him on the PGA Tour.

Here are four other things we learned during the first round of the 2022 Fortinet Championship.

Rookie nerves

Michael Kim hits his tee shot on the sixth hole during the first round of the 2022 Fortinet Championship at Silverado Resort and Spa North course in Napa, California. (Photo: Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)

S.H. Kim made it look easy Thursday, shooting 6-under 66 in his PGA Tour debut. But on the inside it was a different story.

“I haven’t felt this nervous,” he said. “If I had to pick one event, maybe in contention on the Korn Ferry Tour down in Lake Charles maybe compared to the nerves, level of nerves I had today, and even at the Korn Ferry Tour Finals I felt comfortable but today, just because this is my debut on the first season of PGA Tour, I felt a little nervous. … Definitely the first two holes I was really nervous, nerve wracking, but then I had a birdie on No. 3 and a couple more birdies after that, I felt more comfortable.”

Kim wasn’t alone. There are 27 rookies in the field this week and that led to plenty of first tee jitters.

“That first tee shot was different,” Nico Echavarria said….