Two weeks after Oakmont tested the limits of professional golf at the U.S. Open, the Rocket Classic turned into a record-breaking sprint—and Detroit Golf Club never saw it coming.
The tournament ended in a dramatic five-hole playoff between Aldrich Potgieter, Max Greyserman, and Chris Kirk, each finishing at 22 under. But the real story unfolded during the opening rounds, where the course record was rewritten four times in just 48 hours.
It started Thursday when Min Woo Lee matched the existing record with a 63. That mark was quickly broken by Potgieter, who fired a 62—only for Kevin Roy to tie that number later that same day. Then came Jake Knapp. On Friday, Knapp posted an 11-under 61, breaking the record again and launching himself back into contention after an opening-round 72.
While the Rocket Classic didn’t offer the brutal conditions of Oakmont, it gave fans something else entirely: a fireworks show of fearless golf, led by emerging stars playing with momentum and confidence.
Dan Evans, host of Dan’s Golf World Show, sees a connection between the two events. “Oakmont puts your game through a blender,” he said. “When players step onto a course like Detroit afterward, everything feels a little more open—and that’s when records fall.”
Watch the video above for the full breakdown, and catch more episodes of the Dan's Golf World Showhere on SI Golf.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Course Records Broken, Then Broken Again at the Rocket Classic.
