Bae Sang-moon tied for third at RBC Heritage, Spieth has slow start

April 16, 2015
Sang-Moon Bae, right, of South Korea, prepares to hit on the ninth fairway during the first round of the RBC Heritage golf tournament in Hilton Head Island, S.C., Thursday, April 16, 2015. (AP Photo/Stephen B. Morton)

Sang-Moon Bae, right, of South Korea, prepares to hit on the ninth hole during the first round of the RBC Heritage golf tournament in Hilton Head Island, S.C., Thursday, April 16, 2015. (AP Photo/Stephen B. Morton)

South Korea’s Bae Sang-moon took an early lead at the RBC heritage in South Carolina on Thursday with a 4-under 67, but Graeme McDowell and Matt Every eventually inched ahead by a stroke by the end of the day.

Two-time PGA Tour winner Bae kept his shots under control in the breezy conditions at Harbour Town Golf Links while finishing strong by nabbing four birdies in his final eight holes.

“This course is really tough with small greens and small fairways,” he told the Golf Channel in a post-round interview.

Bae last won in October 2014 towards the beginning of the season at the Frys.com Open.

2015 Masters champion Jordan Spieth opted to compete rather than taking time off after a historic win at Augusta National.

The 21-year-old struggled on the course and carded a 3-over 74, which included two bogeys and a double.

He admitted that he was tired from all the hype surrounding his latest win, but expects to play better moving forward.

“Yesterday my energy level was maybe at a two,” Spieth said. “Today I’m back up to about a six. I should be at a nine tomorrow.”