On the shoulders of Jake Knapp's sub-60 round, $70M worth cricket legend shoots 59 in New Zealand - Report

Jake Knapp stunned the world as he shot 59 during the opening round at the Cognizant Classic, and now a cricket legend worth $70 million just equaled his score. While Ricky Ponting's 59 was done in a pro-am in New Zealand and Knapp's was on the PGA Tour, it's rare that two such rounds reportedly occurred within roughly 24 hours of each other.

Golf X account Flushing It posted a clip from Ponting's outing, showcasing him driving the green on a par-four. That led to an eagle putt and helped contribute to his overall 59 scoreline.

However, the pro-am is team-based, and Ponting's team isn't doing as well as he individually would be. He and his partner, Louis Dobbelaar, are currently tied for 13th and are 19-under in the second round.

Ponting and Dobbelaar, a Korn Ferry Tour golfer, used the 59 to help keep themselves afloat in what has been a very competitive pro-am. Jake Knapp used his to take an early lead at the Cognizant Classic.

Knapp, who won the 2024 Mexico Open at VidantaWorld, has managed to shave another stroke off his scoreline through six holes in round two. He maintains a two-stroke lead over Daniel Berger, thanks to his -12 score from Thursday.

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Golf stars comment on Jake Knapp's sterling 59

Jake Knapp had an 18-foot eagle putt for what would've been a 58. It was on the 18th hole, but the golfer just missed and had to settle for a birdie and a 59. He scored the 15th sub-60 round in PGA Tour history.

Jake Knapp turned in a 59 on Thursday (Image via Imagn)

It was an impressive round, but so many pointed to the course and the favorable conditions as to why Knapp might've had such a strong outing. Daniel Berger, who's been creeping back up on Knapp on the leaderboard, joked that he felt that he played well until someone shot a 59.

Billy Horschel said it was a "shame" that the PGA National was proving to be such an easy course in the wake of Jake Knapp's record day. He said the rough wasn't penal enough.

Jordan Spieth also added via Golf.com:

“The fairways being overseeded changes [the golf course] a lot because it’ll make the fairways softer which makes them wider, and then around the greens it’s significantly easier than the dormant Bermuda. You’re looking at easily a stroke a round on just the change in the grass types in the fairway.”

Horschel even said he thought that the overall performance by the field would set the scoring record for the tournament, but he did acknowledge that Knapp still went out and did what no other golfer on the day was able to do.