CHARLOTTE, N.C. _ Nobody plays Quail Hollow Club like Rory McIlroy does. Except on Thursday, during the Wells Fargo Championship's first round, Joel Dahmen did.
McIlroy, the Wells Fargo Championship's only two-time winner, and Dahmen, a PGA Tour journeyman from Washington state, are on opposite ends of the golfing spectrum. But they're tied for the first-round lead at Quail Hollow Club after shooting 5-under par 66s.
McIlroy did it by going on a shot-making binge on the back nine. He made birdies on 10 and 11, three more in a row on holes 14-16. He nearly made another on No. 18 but his 15-foot putt slid past the hole.
Dahmen, who doesn't have a Tour victory and whose best finish this season is a tie for ninth at the Farmers Insurance Open, had a bogey-free round, capped by a birdie on the demanding closing hole.
As well as McIlroy and Dahmen played, they don't have much separation from the field. Five players are a stroke back, including 2018 Masters champion Patrick Reed. Nine more, including 2018 Wells Fargo champ Jason Day, are two strokes behind with 68s.
Another jumbo-sized group _ including world No. 2 Justin Rose and Charlotte-resident Webb Simpson _ are at 2-under.
Playing in the afternoon, when temperatures rose to the mid-80s and the Quail Hollow greens turned crispy and fast, McIlroy's birdie tear included a 5-foot putt on the 10th, a 2-footer on 11, a 7-footer on 14, a 12-footer on 15 and a 9-footer on 16.
"I felt like I hit it like I should have short sort of 1 or 2 under par," McIlroy said. "Not that I deserved to shoot 5 under, but I got the most out of it, which is nice."
Dahmen made a 14-foot birdie putt on No. 18 to tie McIlroy at the top.
"Is my best as good as Rory's? Absolutely not," Dahmen said. "Is my best good enough to compete week in and week out? Absolutely. But I need to do this all weekend."
We'll find out about that again, starting Friday.
