Leishman in the mix in Maui but upstaged by partner's hole-in-one
Marc Leishman has fired himself into contention but has been upstaged by a stunning hole-in-one from playing partner Patton Kizzire midway through day one at the Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.
American Kizzire delighted the crowds when he bagged a 187-yard ace at the par-3 eighth at Kapalua's Plantation course on Maui.
It was the pick of a series of highlights from their group and came after 35-year-old Australian Leishman produced a sensational second shot from 190 yards at the par-5 fifth to tap in for an eagle.
Although Leishman didn't jag a birdie for the rest of the front nine, he picked up a shot at the 10th to move to three-under-par.
Kevin Tway currently tops the leaderboard at six-under at the first US PGA Tour event of the year, while Leishman is joined in a share of second by Kizzire, former US Open winner Webb Simpson and Andrew Putnam.
Two shots further back of Leishman at one-under is countryman Jason Day (through six holes), who bagged two consecutive birdies from the fourth hole before dropping a shot at the seventh.
Joining Day at one-under is fellow former world No.1 Rory McIlroy.
The Tournament of Champions is an elite US$6.5 million ($9.2m) event for winners on the PGA Tour from the previous year and features no 36-hole cut.
This week's 34-player field includes eight of the top 10 golfers on the world rankings.
AAP