PGA Championship 2023: Newcomer Eric Cole alone atop leaderboard as play gets suspended

The first day of play at the 2023 PGA Championship is over.

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Play was suspended due to darkness at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York, with a surprise name sitting atop the leaderboard.

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Eric Cole, a newcomer to the PGA Tour in 2023, sits in first at 5-under.

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Bryson DeChambeau, who sits right behind Cole at 4-under, will be attempting to be the first player from LIV Golf to win a major.

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He is among the 16 players from the Saudi-backed tour playing in the PGA Championship.

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There are 156 players in the field, and they will play the first two rounds Thursday and Friday in groups of three.

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Scottie Scheffler, Corey Conners and Dustin Johnson trail DeChambeau at 3-under.

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The delayed start to play Thursday resulted in play being suspended due to darkness at 8:30 p.m. ET.

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There are 11 groups that still need to finish their first rounds.

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PGA Championship organizers said play would begin again at 7 a.m. ET and that the second round "will start on time as originally scheduled."

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Among all the big names near the top of the leaderboard, a rather unknown player has risen to take the top spot.

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