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HOUSTON — Alejandro Tosti learned the hard way the value of a single shot on the PGA Tour.
At last year's Texas Children's Houston Open, Tosti was tied for the lead on the 72nd hold and missed the green. His chip shot was too strong, leaving him 18 feet for par. He missed, converted the bogey putt and watched as Stephan Jaeger won his first PGA Tour title while Tosti was among five players who finished runner-up.
Little did he know the value of one shot and how it would affect the remainder of his rookie season. The bogey on the final hole of the 2024 Houston Open meant he didn't get a two-year exemption as a member. Didn't get into the signature events. Didn't get into the majors.
Tosti lost his PGA Tour card, finishing 137th in the FedEx Cup standings. He had to go to Q-School, where he won his card back. It has been anything but easy to begin the year, missing five cuts in eight starts. And none of it would be as big of a concern if he had found a way to not bogey the final hole last year.
"First time contending in a PGA Tour tournament and ending in that bitter way, it wasn't really good," Tosti said. "It just crazy to see that one shot can change your career. Reflecting at the end of the year, that one shot ended up costing me.
"It's crazy how one shot can change everything."
That's all in the rearview mirror this week. Tosti carded a bogey-free 5-under 65 on Thursday in rainy conditions, continuing his stellar play at Memorial Park. He's tied for the early lead with Ryan Gerard, who was 7 under thru 16 holes but finished with consecutive bogeys to tie Tosti.
"I think it's just the combination of length and that the rough is not playing long so I'm able to just tee it up and bomb it," Tosti said of why he pays well in Houston. "That's my strength, so I think that will be the key on this course for me."
He ranked second in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee in the first round, hitting 11-of-13 fairways. His driving distance was also 312 yards, that advantage shortening a golf course that was playing even longer with Thursday's wet and windy conditions.
Tosti was 3 under on Memorial Park's trio of par 5s, and he added circles at Nos. 12 and 13 to get to 5 under. He finished his round as another wave of heavier rain moved in, and he was thankful to be done.
"Very pleased with the result," Tosti said. "I played very solid and very excited to be in the clubhouse now."
Among the chasers early are Trey Mullinax, Mac Meissner, Min Woo Lee and Sam Ryder, the quartet sitting a shot behind after 66s to open. World No. 2 Rory McIlroy, making his first start in Houston since 2014, shot even-par 70.
"It's nice to come to places that you don't know and having to learn a new golf course is sort of ... I don't do it all that often anymore, so it's nice to be able to do it again," McIlroy said.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Alejandro Tosti early leader 2025 Houston Open scores, highlights
Continue reading...
At last year's Texas Children's Houston Open, Tosti was tied for the lead on the 72nd hold and missed the green. His chip shot was too strong, leaving him 18 feet for par. He missed, converted the bogey putt and watched as Stephan Jaeger won his first PGA Tour title while Tosti was among five players who finished runner-up.
Little did he know the value of one shot and how it would affect the remainder of his rookie season. The bogey on the final hole of the 2024 Houston Open meant he didn't get a two-year exemption as a member. Didn't get into the signature events. Didn't get into the majors.
Tosti lost his PGA Tour card, finishing 137th in the FedEx Cup standings. He had to go to Q-School, where he won his card back. It has been anything but easy to begin the year, missing five cuts in eight starts. And none of it would be as big of a concern if he had found a way to not bogey the final hole last year.
"First time contending in a PGA Tour tournament and ending in that bitter way, it wasn't really good," Tosti said. "It just crazy to see that one shot can change your career. Reflecting at the end of the year, that one shot ended up costing me.
"It's crazy how one shot can change everything."
That's all in the rearview mirror this week. Tosti carded a bogey-free 5-under 65 on Thursday in rainy conditions, continuing his stellar play at Memorial Park. He's tied for the early lead with Ryan Gerard, who was 7 under thru 16 holes but finished with consecutive bogeys to tie Tosti.
"I think it's just the combination of length and that the rough is not playing long so I'm able to just tee it up and bomb it," Tosti said of why he pays well in Houston. "That's my strength, so I think that will be the key on this course for me."
He ranked second in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee in the first round, hitting 11-of-13 fairways. His driving distance was also 312 yards, that advantage shortening a golf course that was playing even longer with Thursday's wet and windy conditions.
Tosti was 3 under on Memorial Park's trio of par 5s, and he added circles at Nos. 12 and 13 to get to 5 under. He finished his round as another wave of heavier rain moved in, and he was thankful to be done.
"Very pleased with the result," Tosti said. "I played very solid and very excited to be in the clubhouse now."
Among the chasers early are Trey Mullinax, Mac Meissner, Min Woo Lee and Sam Ryder, the quartet sitting a shot behind after 66s to open. World No. 2 Rory McIlroy, making his first start in Houston since 2014, shot even-par 70.
"It's nice to come to places that you don't know and having to learn a new golf course is sort of ... I don't do it all that often anymore, so it's nice to be able to do it again," McIlroy said.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Alejandro Tosti early leader 2025 Houston Open scores, highlights
Continue reading...
