If shooting sub-60 was a virus, its spread has reached epidemic proportions.
On Friday, Russell Knox became the second player this season to shoot 59, doing so in the second round of the Albertson's Boise Open. The Scot shot 12 under par on the day at Hillcrest Country Club in Idaho.
Knox began his round on the 10th hole, making birdie before a run of four consecutive pars. He then played Nos. 15-17 in 4 under, going birdie-eagle-birdie before a par to make the turn in 5-under 30.
On the second nine, Knox parred the first, then made eagle at the par-5 second, followed by five consecutive birdies. With a pair of closing pars, Knox locked up 59, but a birdie on either hole could have given him the first 58 in Web.com Tour history.
Two weeks ago, Chad Collins nearly broke 60 after playing his first 12 holes in 11 under par at the Utah Championship. Will Wilcox finished the job in the final round, however, becoming the fourth player in Web.com Tour history to shoot 59 (and third not to win that very tournament).
Before Wilcox and Knox, the last player to shoot 59 on the developmental circuit was Jason Gore, who did it in 2005 in the second round of the Cox Classic. Gore went on to win the tournament in a playoff as the last of three consecutive wins that landed him on the PGA Tour through a Battlefield Promotion.
In 1998, both Doug Dunakey and Notah Begay III shot 59 on the circuit.
Begay III did it first in the second round of the Dominion Open in Richmond, Va., before ending up tied for sixth place.
Dunakey did it at the Miami Valley Open, finishing the job after starting 10 under through his first 11 holes. However, he could have shot 59 were it not for a three-putt bogey at the last hole. He finished T-2.
Earlier in the season, Open champion Phil Mickelson had a putt for 59 in the first round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open. It lipped the cup but did not drop. Mickelson shot 60 and went on to win the tournament.
There have been five rounds of 59 recorded on the PGA Tour, with the last coming from Stuart Appleby to win the 2010 Greenbrier Classic.
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