Brandt Snedeker in Chicago birdie blitz

Red-hot Brandt Snedeker piled up a PGA Tour season-best seven consecutive birdies on the way to an early one-shot lead in the first round of the BMW Championship.

Brandt Snedeker acknowledges the crowd after the first of his six consecutive birdies. Picture: AP

The American fired a flawless eight-under-par 63 despite tricky, gusty conditions at

Conway Farms Golf Club to seize control of the third of the PGA Tour’s four lucrative

FedExCup play-off events. Helped by a 40-foot putt which he sank from the back fringe of the green at the par-three 17th, his eighth hole of the day, Snedeker reeled off seven consecutive birdies from the 13th to rocket to the top of the leaderboard.

Compatriot Zach Johnson opened with a seven-birdie 64 and world No 1 Tiger Woods shot a 66 to end the day level with fellow American Steve Stricker and South African Charl Schwartzel but Snedeker commanded the spotlight.

“It was one of those days where everything seemed to go right in the middle of the round,” said the reigning FedExCup champion. “To roll off seven birdies in a row kind of came out of nowhere. I wasn’t expecting it.”

Woods, seeking his sixth PGA Tour victory this season, was not in the best of moods after failing to birdie any of the three par-fives.

“I’m not exactly real happy,” said the 14-times major winner, who mixed seven birdies with two bogeys. “I certainly wasted a lot of shots out there today.”