2026 Travelers Championship leaderboard: Round 1 Final Standings
BetspertsGolf
20 hours ago
Eric Cole leads the 2026 Travelers Championship after a 7-under 63 in Thursday’s opening round at TPC River Highlands. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler headlines a six-man group one shot back at 6 under, joined by Nico Echavarria, Ben Griffin, Matt Fitzpatrick, Kristoffer Reitan, and Bud Cauley. With this signature event playing soft and scorable, the leaderboard is bunched at the top heading into Round 2.
The Travelers Championship is the final signature event of the 2026 PGA Tour season, a no-cut, 72-player event with a 20 million dollar purse and 3.6 million dollars going to the winner. All 72 players will play four rounds, so there is no cut line to track this week. Keegan Bradley returns as the defending champion.
Travelers Championship Round 1 standings
Eric Cole sits alone at the top at 7 under after carding the low round of the morning wave. Six players are tied for second at 6 under, and another six share eighth at 5 under, leaving the first round leaderboard tightly packed. The standings below reflect the completed first round at TPC River Highlands.
| Position | Player | Score to par |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eric Cole | -7 |
| T2 | Scottie Scheffler | -6 |
| T2 | Nico Echavarria | -6 |
| T2 | Ben Griffin | -6 |
| T2 | Matt Fitzpatrick | -6 |
| T2 | Kristoffer Reitan | -6 |
| T2 | Bud Cauley | -6 |
| T8 | Patrick Cantlay | -5 |
| T8 | Brandt Snedeker | -5 |
| T8 | Aaron Rai | -5 |
| T8 | Viktor Hovland | -5 |
| T8 | Justin Rose | -5 |
| T8 | Corey Conners | -5 |
Round 1 storylines and leaderboard news
Eric Cole grabbed the lead by going low on the back nine, where an eagle on the reachable par-5 13th anchored his 63. Cole, a strong putter on these poa annua greens, took advantage of calm morning conditions before the wind and the afternoon wave arrived. His one-shot cushion puts a player without a PGA Tour win at the top of one of the strongest fields outside the majors.
Scottie Scheffler did exactly what the favorite is supposed to do, posting a bogey-free 64 with six birdies and clean work inside 10 feet. Scheffler is a past champion at TPC River Highlands and remains the man to beat at a course where his ball striking travels even with distance largely neutralized. He noted afterward that low-scoring weeks make it hard to recover ground if you fall behind, which is why his bogey-free start matters.
Matt Fitzpatrick was one of the stories of the morning. Playing a new Ping driver after cracking his previous one, Fitzpatrick missed just one fairway and made seven birdies to reach 6 under, exactly the precision profile this wedge-and-approach course rewards. Ben Griffin and Bud Cauley, fresh off his RBC Canadian Open win, round out the accurate-iron names in the chase group at 6 under.
There were no withdrawals, weather delays, or penalties reported in Round 1, and the full 72-player field remains intact. Home-region favorite Ben James, a Connecticut native, opened with a 68 to sit inside the top of the board. With no cut in this signature event, even the players who opened slowly still have 54 holes to climb.
Betting and DFS angle for Round 2
Scottie Scheffler is the clear betting favorite heading into Round 2 despite trailing by one, with DraftKings shortening him to +235 after his bogey-free 64. Eric Cole, the overnight leader, sits much longer at +1900, a reflection of the gap in track record between the two. The bunched leaderboard and the soft conditions keep a deep group live in this no-cut format.
| Player | Round 2 outright odds |
|---|---|
| Scottie Scheffler | +235 |
| Matt Fitzpatrick | +880 |
| Ben Griffin | +1500 |
| Patrick Cantlay | +1600 |
| Eric Cole | +1900 |
| Bud Cauley | +2100 |
| Sam Burns | +2100 |
The course profile favors accurate, strong-iron, hot-putting types, and Friday’s forecast of morning showers should keep TPC River Highlands soft and receptive for another low-scoring day. The PGA Tour flagged Sam Burns as a value play at +2100 after a bogey-free round in which he had 15 looks at birdie from inside 20 feet and converted only four, the kind of putting that tends to normalize for the field’s top-ranked putter. Russell Henley, a strong fit at this venue, drew a +170 number for a top-10 finish as a steady option who rarely beats himself.
See what the numbers say before you bet. The Rabbit Hole gives you the strokes gained PGA data to build your own model, and code BSG26 gets you 25% off any plan.
FAQ: 2026 Travelers Championship Round 1
Who leads the Travelers Championship after Round 1?
Eric Cole leads at 7 under after an opening 63 at TPC River Highlands. Scottie Scheffler, Nico Echavarria, Ben Griffin, Matt Fitzpatrick, Kristoffer Reitan, and Bud Cauley are one shot back at 6 under.
Is there a cut at the Travelers Championship?
No. The Travelers Championship is a signature event with a 72-player field and no 36-hole cut, so every player in the field plays all four rounds through Sunday.
When is the final round of the 2026 Travelers Championship?
The final round is Sunday, June 28, at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut. The winner earns 3.6 million dollars from the 20 million dollar purse and 700 FedExCup points.
21+. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER. Responsible Gaming Resources