Golf First: 58 on a Par-72 Course on a Pro Tour

There have been a handful of 58s scored in professional golf for 18 holes. Jim Furyk, for example, was the first to do it on the PGA Tour. But, until October 1, 2021, no pro golfer on any significant tour had ever shot 58 on a par-72 golf course.

Alejandro Del Rey of Spain was the first to accomplish that feat. It happened in the second round of the Swiss Challenge, a tournament on the Challenge Tour. The Challenge Tour is one level below the European Tour, and its best players "graduate" to the European Tour.

The golf course was Golf Saint Apollinaire, which was set up as a par-72 for the 2021 Swiss Challenge. That makes Del Rey's 58 a 14-under score in relation to par. He therefore became the first pro golfer on any tour to post 14-under in any round played in a tour event.

Del Rey, 23 years old, played the back nine first, then the front nine. He went out in 29, and came in in 29. He opened his round with a birdie on No. 10, followed by back-to-back eagles. So he was already 5-under through only three holes. He made two more birdies on Nos. 14 and 15.

When he made the turn (heading to the first tee, remember he started on the back nine), Del Rey birdied five of the first six holes, then finished out with an eagle on No. 9. Not bad for a day's work!

Del Rey, who played college golf at Arizona State University, was 2-over in the first round. So he pulled off a 16-stroke swing. He entered the Swiss Challenge having played nine tournaments in 2021 on the Challenge Tour, and ranking 86th on the tour's points list.