Eric Cole posted a bogey-free 7-under 63 to equal his season's best round. He achieved this same score at the Charles Schwab Challenge in round three.

Cole's first-round performance excelled across multiple strokes gained categories. He ranked first in Tee to Green with 4.547. His Approach the Green ranking reached second place with 2.876. Around the Green, he placed fourth with 1.443.

Cole holds the first-round lead or co-lead for the fourth time this season. This marks his first outright first-round lead of the year. However, he remains winless in three prior first-round lead situations. Most recently, he shared the first-round lead two weeks ago at the RBC Canadian Open. That tournament followed a first-round 64 with a second-round 76. Cole became the first player to hold at least an 18-hole lead and miss the cut since Jordan Spieth at the 2023 Sony Open in Hawaii.

Cole seeks his first PGA Tour victory in his 123rd start. He has recorded three runner-up finishes, including the 2023 Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches.

This season, Cole has posted four top-10 finishes across 16 starts. A playoff loss to Russell Henley at the Charles Schwab Challenge led his results.

Cole makes his fourth Travelers Championship start. He finished T24 in 2023 and T48 in 2024. In 2025, rounds of 68-67-69 placed him at T14 entering the final round. He withdrew prior to that round due to illness.

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler opened with a bogey-free 6-under 64. This marked his seventh start at the Travelers Championship. The 2024 Travelers Championship winner delivered an impressive first-round performance.

Scheffler's bogey-free round represents his 83rd such round on tour. This achievement marks the most bogey-free rounds of any player. The PGA TOUR has tracked this statistic since 2019.

His first-round scoring average at TPC River Highlands stands at 65.86. This average reflects his consistent excellence at the venue over time.

As the FedExCup leader, Scheffler seeks his second victory this season. He previously won The American Express earlier in the year. The 20-time TOUR winner remains in excellent form and position.

Two weeks after capturing his first PGA TOUR victory at the RBC Canadian Open, Bud Cauley posted a bogey-free 6-under 64. His score ranked as the second-lowest in 28 rounds at TPC River Highlands. Only a 63 from Round 1 in 2014 surpassed it.

Matt Fitzpatrick shot a 6-under 64 to post a score of 4/-6. He stands as the season's only three-time winner. Fitzpatrick has improved in each of his four prior Travelers Championship starts. He missed the cut in 2020, finished T49 in 2023, placed T36 in 2024, and achieved T17 in 2025.

Keegan Bradley, the 2023 and 2025 Travelers Championship winner, opened with a 3-under 67. He aims to become the first player since Phil Mickelson to win consecutive Travelers Championship titles. Mickelson achieved this feat in 2001-2002.

Bradley opened with a 62 in his 2023 championship win. He followed with a 64 in his 2025 championship win.

Wyndham Clark, currently tied for 32nd place at 2-under par, pursues an unprecedented achievement. He aims to become the first player to win a major championship and then a PGA TOUR event the following week since Scottie Scheffler accomplished this feat in 2024. Scheffler won the 2024 Masters Tournament, then captured the 2024 RBC Heritage the subsequent week.