Casey Jarvis has put himself in position to challenge for the Race to Dubai title after an opening six-under-par 65 earned him a one-shot lead at the Genesis Championship in South Korea.
Fourth on the Race to Dubai Ranking Delivered by DP World, Jarvis birdied the final hole at Woo Jeong Hills Country Club to regain the outright lead from nearest challenger Sanghun Shin on day one of the final event of the regular season.
Already a two-time winner this season, the 23-year-old is projected to overtake Rory McIlroy and Patrick Reed and enter the DP World Tour Play-Offs in second place behind leader Eugenio Chacarra.
“Felt really good out there,” Jarvis said.
“Hit a lot of good-quality iron shots and made some good putts. Been working really hard on the greens and to see it finally paying off a bit is really nice. So yeah, super happy.
“I definitely think the putting has improved a lot. I went through a bit of a dip, so I worked hard with the putter and took some time in the middle of the season to start finding the stroke again. I started with a new putting coach and it seems to be working really well.”
The South African made three birdies in a row at the third, fourth and fifth holes before another at the eighth took him to four under alongside early leaders Antoine Rozner and Mikael Lindberg.
A dropped shot at the ninth saw him turn in 33, but after two pars, a brilliant approach from the rough at the 12th helped him regain a share of the lead. He then moved clear with a 32-footer for birdie to reach five under.
Close behind on the other side of the course, Frederic Lacroix converted from two feet for birdie at the sixth, his 15th, to briefly join Jarvis at the top. The Frenchman then gave the shot straight back after missing the green at the par-three seventh before closing with two pars for an opening 67.
Sanghun Shin, who had been part of a four-way tie one shot back, was the next to join Jarvis as the Korean Tour (KPGA) Order of Merit leader birdied his final hole.
Shin, who only returned from military service this season, holed out from a bunker at the first to set the tone for a round featuring six birdies and a solitary dropped shot at the fourth.
After Shin signed for a 66, Jarvis regained the outright lead by holing from seven feet for a closing birdie of his own.
It has been a breakout year for Jarvis, who recorded two top tens before claiming his maiden DP World Tour title in February with a birdie-eagle finish at the Magical Kenya Open presented by absa.
A week later, he won his second DP World Tour title on home soil at the Investec South African Open Championship, securing qualification for both the Masters Tournament and The Open Championship in 2026, where he finished tied sixth.
He almost made it three wins in a row with a tie for second at the Joburg Open, and although he has not maintained that momentum throughout the season, he recently returned to form by finishing tied second at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
Behind Jarvis and Shin, a group of five players sit in a pack on four under, made up of Antoine Rozner, Mikael Lindberg, Si Woo Kim, Lacroix and Niklas Lemke.
Ryan Fox headlines the group a shot further back alongside Dan Bradbury, Marcus Kinhult and Ryggs Johnston - who is fighting for his Tour card this week.
