Die-hard New York Knicks fan John Pak is turning frustration into fuel at Colonial this week.
The PGA Tour rookie, who has one top-25 finish so far this season, leads the Charles Schwab Challenge after the first round.
PGA Tour rookie Pak leads the Charles Schwab Challenge after the first roundGettyHe hit five birdies and one eagle in a career-best 7-under-par round of 63 on Thursday.
Pak claimed a three-shot lead after the first round as he chases a breakthrough in his debut year.
Tommy Fleetwood and Brian Harman were among a group of nine players were four behind at the end of the opening day.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, meanwhile, is tied for 20th after carding a 68 fresh off winning his first PGA Championship.
New Jersey native Pak, admitted that much of the motivation he needed came from his beloved Knicks blowing a 14-point lead in the final minutes of a tough loss to the Indiana Pacers in Game 1 of the NBA‘s Eastern Conference finals.
“I’m a die-hard Knicks fan, and that was historically one of the worst losses I’ve ever seen in my life,” Pak said, after New York were beaten in overtime.
“There was a fire lit under me, yeah, this morning. I was a little p***ed off about that.”
He went on to share relief that the Knicks weren’t playing on Thursday night, as he had one less thing to stress about – although they do play in Game 2 on Friday night.
“I didn’t sleep well after that loss last night. I’m going to recover, do a little stretching,” the 26-year-old admitted.
Pak and No. 1-ranked Scheffler enjoyed the same start at Colonial, with eagles on their respective first holes.
Pak and Scheffler both started with eagles at ColonialGetty Scheffler, though, failed to keep up with the rookie and finished the first round tied for 20thGettyBut the three-time major winner couldn’t keep up with the rookie from there.
Pak added five birdies in a bogey-free round and became the fifth rookie to hold a first-round lead in an individual event this year.
He will be hoping to avoid the kind of crumble that the Knicks suffered against the Pacers on Wednesday.
With just under three minutes to play — and the roar of Madison Square Garden behind them — New York led Game 1 against Indiana by 14 points.
But amid a flurry of defensive mistakes and costly turnovers, as well as a stunning last-second shot from Tyrese Haliburton, the game went to overtime.
Pacers star Haliburton even had time to channel NBA legend Reggie Miller with a ‘choking’ celebration before Indiana stole a stunning 138-135 win.
Haliburton scored the game-tying basket against the Knicks as time expiredGetty The Knicks will be hoping to bounce back in Game 2 on FridayGettyKnicks stars admitted post-game that they should have been able to get across the line in Game 1.
“Defensively, we let off the gas. The intensity and physicality weren’t there,” shooting guard Josh Hart said of the closing minutes.
“Offensively, we were playing slower, and more stagnant. It looked like we were playing not to lose.”
Karl-Anthony Towns, who finished with 35 points and 12 rebounds, admitted: “There’s a lot of things we did good and we put ourselves in position to win.
“We played 46 good minutes. Those two minutes (are) where we lost the game, and that’s on all of us.”
The Knicks will have a chance to put things right against the Pacers in when they return to Madison Square Garden on Friday night.
Pak is among the later starters on Friday night so will tune in after he knows his own fate for the weekend.
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