Both Luke Donald and Jhonattan Vegas were delighted with their first-round efforts at the PGA Championship in Quail Hollow on Thursday.

Ryder Cup captain Donald finished T4 after shooting an impressive four under, while Vegas was the surprise leader on -7, two shots ahead of second-placed Cameron Davis.

And 47-year-old Donald was clearly enjoying his unexpected position near the top of the leaderboard, having only been included among the players because of a long-standing tradition of Ryder Cup captains being invited.

US Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley, meanwhile, finished T9 on -3.

"I'm here only because I'm captain of the European Ryder Cup team. I wouldn't be in this field otherwise," Donald told a press conference after his first round.

"I understand that. I understand that my game isn't where it used to be, and that is the focus. So it really doesn't bother me one bit."

The secret to Donald's performance in the first round was consistency, having avoided any bogeys whatsoever and registered four birdies.

"Bogey-free in a major championship on a course that you wouldn't have thought would be ideal for me is always fun," he said.

"I got off to a really nice, steady start. I hit a bunch of fairways on the front nine which always makes me feel good about my game."

All in on Vegas 

A round of 64 gives him a two-shot lead at Quail Hollow.#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/8cXZkTXLtz

— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 16, 2025

First-round leader Vegas, meanwhile, acknowledged that he did not see his score coming after finishing top of the pile on day one.

"Incredible. Any chance you get to shoot 64 at a major championship is always great," he told a press conference.

"Obviously with the conditions yesterday, I didn't really see that score coming. But I think I got lucky that I was able to tee off very late and the course obviously is drying very quick.

"I've gone through a lot of injuries and that type of stuff and hasn't been easy the past few years, but the game has always been there. It's about putting it together and playing your best when it's time to play.

"Obviously haven't been able to do it at the bigger events, at the majors. So it's a goal that I have in mind to put myself in these type of positions. We started the right way."