Tour Championship First-Round Leader Tips: Dave Tindall's three to back up to 28/1

Tour Championship weather forecast for Thursday

It looks set to be a rainy day in Atlanta although wind is a non-factor. Temperatures will be in the mid-to-high 70s all day.

The 30 players (15 x two-balls) go out in a three-hour window from 11am to 2pm local time.

There's no hint of a weather bias so I won't put any emphasis on tee-times.

First Round Leader Bet 1: Russell Henley @ 20/121.00

There's another rather well-known course in Georgia where players have enjoyed repeated first-round leads.

So with Justin Rose and Jordan Spieth in mind (eight FRLs between them at Augusta National) I'll back last year's early East Lake leader, Russell Henley.

Henley, a Georgia native, set the pace with a nine-under 61 and although there was an element of 'wow', it didn't exactly come out of thin air given that he'd closed with a 62 in the 2024 Tour Championship.

Fast starts at East Lake are the norm for Henley and his last four openers there reading back from last year read 61, 67, 65, 67. He was in the top seven after day one in all of those.

Eighth at halfway (67-66) in last week's BMW Championship where he eventually finished 12th, Henley is worth a bet to get off to another flyer. He hits away at 12:42 local.

First Round Leader Bet 2: Adam Scott @ 28/129.00

Adam Scott scraped through to East Lake in 28th spot but now he's here the Aussie can make a mark.

Scott won the Tour Championship way back in 2005 but he also shot the fifth best 72-hole score in two of his last three visits (2019 and 2024). It's a course he clearly gets on with.

As for fast starts, he opened with a 66 to sit second after the opening lap in 2024 while he's been in the top five following round one on five different occasions.

Two tournaments ago, Scott started out with a 66 (sixth after R1) at St Jude where he posted 12th while a closing 67 at the BMW Championship on Sunday put him 16th.

He's in the second group out alongside fellow veteran Justin Rose at 11:12.

First Round Leader Bet 3: Robert MacIntyre @ 25/126.00

Robert MacIntyre looked set to just miss out on the Tour Championship but a final-round 65 - the joint-best of the day - at the BMW Championship last week lifted him from 36th to 25th in the FedEx Cup standings.

With that fresh in the mind, the Scot could freewheel his way to a low one in the first round.

MacIntyre enjoyed some hot FRL form in last year's Playoffs when opening with a 62 at the BMW Championship and a 64 here. They were good enough for first and third respectively.

Fourth after day one of last month's Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, MacIntyre also fired a 64 in the final round of his Tour Championship debut in 2024.

Talking at East Lake last year, MacIntyre said he'd driven the ball "beautifully" and that was the key to his low score. It bodes well then that he ranked 3rd for SG: Off The Tee last week.

Back the 11:24 starter at 25s.

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