'Pretty Special, Especially At My Age' - 71-Year-Old Enjoys Entertaining PGA Tour Return

It was a memorable opening round at the Sanderson Farms Championship as 71-year-old Reed Hughes became the oldest player to start a PGA Tour event in 15 years.

Hughes has played in eight previous PGA Tour events having first made his debut 40 years ago, with his last appearance back at the 2007 Zurich Classic.

Not since Gary Player teed it up at the 2009 Masters aged 73 had a player as old as Hughes featured - and he came close to shooting his age too as he carded an opening 76 at Jackson Country Club in Mississippi.

Just two holes cost Hughes the chance to become the first player to shoot his age since a 71-year-old Arnold Palmer shot 71 back in 2001 - as he made a triple bogey and double bogey on the back nine in Mississippi.

Those five dropped shots in two holes also cost Hughes the chance of being the oldest player to make the cut on the PGA Tour since a 68-year-old Jay Haas at the 2022 Zurich Classic - although that's a team event.

"Pretty special, especially at my age," said Hughes of his memorable round. "I've had a lot of fun, and hopefully I can shoot a little better tomorrow. I don't think I'm going to be able to get down there low enough, but I'm going to try.

"But yeah, special just being out here inside the ropes. It's nerve-racking for sure."

Hughes being in the field is no gimmick, he played his way in by winning the Gulf States E-Z-GO Section Championship last year which had a place in the Sanderson Farms Championship as a prize.

The Mississippi native was struggling to put the experience into words after playing with the PGA Tour pros again for the first time in 17 years - but admitted his round was a little slower than usual.

"Like I said, it's just unbelievable," Hughes added. "I can't believe I'm doing it. It's hard for me because I'm used to riding in a cart and playing in about three hours. My round would have ended at home about No. 9, so that would have been a good day."

Hughes first played on the PGA Tour at the Danny Thomas Memphis Classic way back in 1984 - when Ronald Regan was US President, Ben Crenshaw, Fuzzy Zoeller, Seve Ballesteros and Lee Trevino won the four golf Majors and Tom Watson topped the PGA Tour money list with $476,260.

After his first round, Hughes knows he won't make the cut, but just hopes to improve on his first round, which had a memorable start.

"I hit it in the left rough on 1, and I think - it was sitting down, and I couldn't even see the ball," Hughes recalled. 

"I had to go under a tree, and I kept it under. I topped it about 20 yards. Then I hit it up on the green and made the 30-footer for par, and that was special. 

"Then I had a gimme on the second hole. I had like about two inches on the second hole, and that calmed me down a little bit."