HOUSTON — Sam Burns is in contention.
The former LSU All-American shot an opening round five-under par 65 at The Texas Children’s Houston Open on Thursday. That score placed him tied for second, two strokes back of leader Paul Waring, at the PGA Tour stop held at Memorial Park Golf Course.
Burns started his round on the back nine and immediately got to work as he birdied No. 10. After three pars, he would give a stroke back on the par-four No. 14. Burns turned it around with birdies on No. 16 and No. 18.
He would keep up the pace on the front nine with a birdie at No. 3 and No. 6. He gave a stroke back with a bogey on No. 7 but finished strong with birdies on No. 8 and No. 9.
Tied with Burns in second place on the leaderboard are Michael Brennan and Tom Hoge.
Waring, meanwhile, shot a bogey-free seven-under par 63 on Thursday. The tournament 18-hole leader is even more surprising considering that in his last 15 PGA Tour events, the Englishman missed the cut 13 times and withdrew another time. His best finish was tied for 47th at the RBC Canadian Open.
A few past tournament champions shot under par in the first round on Thursday. Stephan Jager (2024) shot a four-under 66 to be tied for fifth and did that even with a double bogey on No. 7. Tony Finau (2022), meanwhile, started the day with a bogey on No. 1 but would card five birdies, including three on the back nine, to finish at three-under.
Min Woo Lee (2025) started strong with back-to-back birdies but then later made bogey on three holes in a six-hole stretch. He got a stroke back with a birdie on No. 16 but would bogey No. 17 and closed things out with a birdie on No. 18. He finished the day at two-under par.
Rickie Fowler is among a group of golfers lurking not that far behind Burns. Fowler is tied for eighth after shooting an opening round three-under 67.
Fowler, who also began his round on the back nine, carded 10 straight pars before finally getting a birdie on No. 2. He followed that up with another birdie on No. 3. He would give a stroke back on No. 7 with a bogey but bounced back with birdies on No. 8 and 9.
Other notable golfers that shot under par on Thursday were Adam Scott at three-under, Danny Willett and Jason Day at two-under, Shane Lowry at one-under par.
Five-time major champion Brooks Kopeka started with two birdies on his first six holes, but then his round went sideways. He double-bogeyed No. 7, 9, and 10. He finally got a stroke back with a birdie on No. 16 but bogeyed No. 17 and finished the day at 4-over par. Wyndham Clark, the 2023 U.S. Open champion, also struggled as he shot a 4-over par 74 and is in danger of missing the cut.