Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images
Frankie Capan III, a 24-year-old who played collegiately at Florida Gulf Coast, set a new course record on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Move over, Scottie Scheffler. Frankie Capan III has taken one of your records.
On Thursday, at the Veritex Bank Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour, Capan III recorded the second-lowest score in tour history with a 13-under 58.
His 58 set a new course record at Texas Rangers Golf Club in Arlington, Texas, which Scheffler previously held. The reigning Masters champion shot a 59 on this course on May 3, 2020, while playing with friends, as the PGA Tour was on hiatus due to COVID-19 at the time.
Meanwhile, Capan III bested Scheffler during the first round of an event on the Korn Ferry Tour, which has seen six different players card sub-60 rounds since the beginning of the 2023 season.
“It was a lot of fun out there. After the first four, five holes, I just felt really comfortable with my game and where I was at,” Capan III said.
Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images
Frankie Capan III poses with his scorecard after shooting a 58.
“I’ve been putting in a lot of work in the last few weeks and really the last few months just trying to dial a few things in. I think it all came together, which was nice. And then whenever you’re out there playing well and going low, I really just wanted to keep going as much as I could.”
Capan III rattled off four birdies over his first five holes and then capped off the front nine with an eagle three to shoot a 6-under 29.
By the time he made the turn, he knew his round had the potential to enter rare territory.
Seven consecutive birdies followed on holes 10 through 16, and suddenly, Capan III sat at 13-under par through 16 holes.
But he did not realize that this course played as a par-71. He thought it was a par-72.
“When I got to [13-under], I knew that, okay, there’s 59,” Capan III added.
Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images
Frankie Capan III poses for a photo with the course records.
“But very seldom are you that far under par. I shot 59 before, so I thought I might as well break that. Then, I didn’t know it was par 71, but I was really just trying to birdie 17 and 18. Unfortunately, I didn’t get either one. I made an eight-foot slider on 18 to shoot 58. It was pretty cool.”
His tee shot on the par-5 18th found the fairway bunker, forcing him to lay up on the 524-yard par-5. He then found the green with his third shot and two-putted from 39 feet away, including that slider, for par.
“I still thought it was for 59,” Capan III added.
“When someone said it was for 58, I was excited because I know Scottie Scheffler shot 59, so whenever you can beat that guy, especially nowadays, I mean, you’ve got to take advantage.”
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
