How low can you go at the Zurich Classic?

AVONDALE – The early bird catches the worm.

In the case of players drawing early tee times at the Zurich Classic Thursday, the early birds flew high.

The opening round was greeted by rain to get things started and conditions were less than ideal for the early starters.

The rain gave way to sun by 10:20 a.m. and benign conditions as there was little wind as well. That left a course that proved to be virtually defenseless to many of the world’s best players.

Chez Reavie and Lucas Glover took total advantage, blistering the course for 12 birdies as they teamed for a 12-under-par 60 to tie for the lead after one round of the tournament.

In the afternoon, the team of Xinjun Zhang and Zecheng Dou equaled Reavie and Glover with an outstanding round.

Tony Finau, who is 10th in the FedExCup Standings, opened in outstanding fashion with his partner Daniel Summerhays as the duo posted 10 birdies in 18 holes in the better ball format to finish at 10-under-par-62.

Chris Paisley and Tommy Fleetwood went low with a 10-under-par 62, shooting 31 on both the front and back nine.

J.J. Henry and Tom Hoge took advantage of the morning conditions to fire a 10-under-par 62 as well.

Jimmy Walker and Sean O’Hair closed quickly with a pair of birdies to finish at eight-under-par 64.

Jordan Spieth and Ryan Palmer started slowly but picked it up on their final nine holes to finish at six-under-par 66.

Justin Thomas, who leads the FedExCup standings, could not get it going with partner Bud Cauley. They struggled to a two-under-par 70.

The afternoon conditions played firmer and with a little bit more wind, making the scoring slightly more difficult, though there were more good scores.

Kevin Kisner and Scott Brown, who played so well here a year ago, fired a 10-under 62, along with the duo of Michael Kim and Andrew Putman and the pairing of Troy Merritt and Brendon de Jonge.

Of the top players in the world in the field, Jason Day and Ryan Ruffels shot an eight-under-par 64 while Masters champion Patrick Reed of University High teamed with Patrick Cantlay to shoot a 65. Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson also shot 65.

Finishing at 66 were the duo of Jordan Spieth and Ryan Palmer, along with John Rahm and Wesley Bryan and the duo of Zach Johnson and Jonathan Byrd.

Sergio Garcia and Rafa Cabrera Bello fired a 67. Bubba Watson and Matt Kuchar had a very ordinary 68 while Justin Thomas, who is the FedExCup points leader, could not get it going with partner Bud Cauley as they shot a 70 and are in clear danger of missing the cut.

Tomorrow should bring good weather and good scores. Though there is a slight chance of rain, the temperature will reach the low to mid 70’s while the wind will be out of the north and northwest but is not likely to climb above 10 miles an hour, if it reaches that level.

What that translates into is superb scoring again with the first alternate shot format, which will find the round moving more quickly.

It all points to a tournament that will be all about how low can you go? If you want to be around for the weekend, you better get to at least 10 under through two rounds. Even that may not be low enough.