Coody ties the lead at 10-under while Scheffler sits just one shot back, igniting early contention at The American Express.
Pierceson Coody and Scottie Scheffler are off to a hot start at The American Express, with both near the top of the leaderboard after 18 holes.
The tournament includes a three-course rotation for the first three rounds before enforcing a 54-hole cut and playing the final round at the Pete Dye Stadium Course.
Coody started his tournament at the Nicklaus Tournament Course on Thursday, shooting a 10-under 62, tying him for the lead with Min Woo Lee.
"I thought on the front I was hitting my wedges really nice. I missed some 10 or 12-footers. Probably missed with about three or four in that range... But I was making good putts and got things going on the back nine," Coody said after the round.
He opened his round with a birdie before stalling with five straight pars, eventually shooting a front nine 33. However, on the back nine, Coody rattled off seven straight birdies from holes 11-17, helping him shoot a 29 in his final nine holes.
Last week, Coody had a solid finish at the Sony Open, recording a T13th finish. Now, he's building off that performance, signaling that 2026 might be a breakthrough season for him.
"It feels easy when you're playing golf in this kind of weather with the pace the greens are and everything like that, so it was nice to manage my emotions and keep going well," he said.
Scheffler, on the other hand, had his breakthrough season in 2022, taking the world by storm and becoming the machine we all know today.
Oh, and he's not stopping anytime soon.
On his opening nine at La Quinta Country Club on Thursday, Scheffler came out guns blazing, birdieing six of his first nine holes, shooting a score of 30. He cooled off a bit on the back nine, but his nine-under score puts him just one shot back of the leaders, a perfect position for him to pounce.
"I got off to a good start today. I was really sharp on the front nine. Made some nice putts. Hit some good iron shots. A lot of good tee balls," Scheffler said after his round. "I wasn't as sharp as I hoped to be on the back nine, but I scrambled pretty well, and I was able to post a good score."
The 19-time PGA Tour winner and four-time major champion is barely getting out of first gear and still putting out scores like that.
It's a reminder to the rest of the players on tour - if you want to beat Scheffler, you'd better bring your A+ game, or else he'll walk all over you.