North Oaks’ Frankie Capan III shoots a 13-under 58 to take Round 1 lead in Korn Ferry Tour event
Frankie Capan III had the round of a lifetime Thursday at Texas Rangers Golf Club in Arlington.
The North Oaks’ product carded a 13-under, 58 in Round 1 of the Veritex Bank Championship to break the course record — a 59 by current world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler in 2020 — and claim a three-shot lead in the Korn Ferry Tour event.
“Whenever you can beat that guy, especially nowadays, I mean, you’ve got to take advantage,” Capan said of taking aim at Scheffler’s record.
Fresh off a pair of top 10 finishes, Capan was 4-under through eight holes when he went on a scintillating scoring spree. He eagled the par-5, No. 9 hole before carding seven-straight birdies from holes Nos. 10-16.
“It was a lot of fun out there. I think, you know, after the first four, five holes, I just felt really comfortable with my game and where I was at,” Capan told reporters in Arlington, Texas. “I’ve been putting 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 kind of came together, which was nice today.
“And then whenever you’re out there playing well and going low, I really just wanted to keep going as much as I could. I know this course might be gettable the next few days, so just tried to get as many as I could.”
Capan parred the 17th and 18th holes, hitting an 8-foot, sliding putt for par on the final hole to cap off the 58. His round was the talk of Golf Twitter on Thursday, as many of the sport’s biggest media personalities took note of the performance.
Capan said he knew breaking 60 was a legit possibility as he turned for the back nine, but he didn’t realize the course was a Par-71, so initially assumed his 13-under round would equal a 59.
“At the same time, I’m really just still trying to hit every shot, just stay really patient and present out there to where,” he said. “I mean, I knew it was kind of — it was on the radar. But I wasn’t really focused too much on (the score).
“Like, I knew where I was at the whole time out there. I thought it was cool, it was fun, but at the same time, like, you’re hitting those shots. I think that’s the part I fell in love with the most, just enjoying being out there hitting great golf shots. That is where I get the most joy.
It was the second time Capan has ever shot a round in the 50s. He fired a 59 in the final round of the high school state championship tournament in Arizona. Thursday marked Capan’s first round with new caddie Rusty Stark on his bag. So far, so good.
Capan earned his Korn Ferry status through Q-School in the fall of 2022, and even played in the 3M Open via a sponsor’s exemption last summer. He entered the week in 30th on the Korn Ferry Tour points list. The top 30 at season’s end earn their PGA Tour cards.
Currently, there are no Minnesota natives on golf’s top tour.
With a win this week, Capan would catapult into fourth on the points list. So, while there’s plenty of golf to play this weekend, Capan’s round of a lifetime could also prove to be a life-changing event.
“We still have three more days. When I’m playing that hot, I just want to keep going,” he told reporters Thursday. “Trent (Phillips), he shot 10 (under), he could shoot 10 again tomorrow. Really, I just tried to get the most out of it. A lot of fun, but we still have three more days. So, just kind of taking a lot of positives from today, but taking those into this evening and tomorrow.”
