Keegan Bradley was quickly out of the gates at Wilmington Country Club, shooting a 7-under 64 to take the lead of the BMW Championship after day 1.
The American was aided by his lowest front-nine score of 29 to finish one stroke ahead of the Australian Adam Scott.
Despite a strong first day at the BMW Championship, Keegan Bradley likely needs a top-10 finish to be among the 30 players who advance to the Tour Championship in Atlanta, a feat he has not achieved since the U.S Open.
He is currently 44th in the FedExCup standings while Adam Scott is 45th.
PGA champion Justin Thomas finished with a 66 to finish tied for third in the group with former British Open champion Shane Lowry and Harold Varner III.
Xander Schauffele and Collin Morikawa highlight the group tied for sixth with scores of 67.
Rory McIlroy, who missed the cut in the last event, challenged Bradley valiantly until fading in the later stages. Sitting at 6-under with four holes left, the Irishman triple-bogeyed a par-3 15th to finish with 68 which tied him for 13th with Jordan Spieth and Patrick Cantlay.
Will Zalatoris who won his first PGA Tour title last week to move to the top of the FedEx Cup standings, overcame a tough start to escape with a 70 (tying him for 34th on the leaderboard) with the help of four birdies on the back.
Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the world coming off a missed cut, still felt scrappy but holed enough putts for a 69.
