PGA Tour Brunch | Genesis Invitational
Second Round Coverage of the '26 Genesis | Riviera Country Club
By TERRY LYONS, Digital Sports Desk
The Genesis Invitational | Round Two
Suspension summary: The first round was suspended due to inclement weather at 10:13am (local) and resumed at 1:05pm (local), a delay of 2 hours, 52 minutes. Play was suspended due to darkness at 5:41pm (local) and is scheduled to resume today at 7:00am (local/10:00am ET) with 30 players yet to complete their round. The second round will begin at 7:40am (local/10:40am ET).
LOS ANGELES - Aaron Rai currently holds the lead at the rain-drenched Genesis at 6-under thru 16 holes of the first round. His round was highlighted by eagle on No. 1. Rai’s (68) marked his low round at Riviera Country Club (R3/2022, R4/2023).
Rai made his fourth start at The Genesis Invitational (T61/2022, T29/2023, T37/2025) and has made two starts on TOUR this season (T50/Sony Open in Hawaii and a T73/AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am).
Jacob Bridgeman made his tournament debut and opened with a 5-under (66), highlighted by an eagle on No. 1, marking his first time in 207 rounds opening with an eagle. Bridgeman has two Top-10s in four starts this season (T4/Sony Open in Hawaii, T8/AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am)
Rory McIlroy recorded his lowest opening-round at Riviera Country Club with a 5-under (66) with the previous being a R1: 67/2016, 2023). McIlroy is in thr midst of his 10th appearance at The Genesis Invitational with three Top-10s in nine prior starts (T4/2019, T5/2020, T10/2022).
The world’s No. 2 is one round into his second start of the season after finishing T14 at last week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Genesis Invitational | Partial Leaderboard for 1st Round
1 Aaron Rai -6 thru 16
T2 Jacob Bridgeman 66 (-5)
T2 Rory McIlroy 66 (-5)
4 Ryan Fox 67 (-4)
Full Leaderboard | (link)
Preview | The Genesis Invitational
COURSE: Riviera County Club, Pacific Palisades, California
OVERVIEW: 2026 Genesis Invitational (link)
ARCHITECTS: G.C.Thomas, Jr. and W.P. Bell
YARDS/PAR: 7,383 yards/Par 71
PRIZE Money/First Place Winnings: $20,000,000/$4,000,000
DEFENDING CHAMPION: Ludvig Åberg (at Torrey Pines)
PAST RESULTS: (link)
FEDEx CUP Points to Winner: 700
SOCIAL MEDIA: #PGATour #FedExCup @thegenesisinv
Media Coverage of The 2026 Genesis Invitational
Friday, February 20, 2026 - (All Times Eastern)
10:15am - 8:00pm - ESPN+ streaming
2:00pm - 8:00pm - PGA Tour Radio on Sirius/XM or streaming online
4:00pm - 8:00pm - Golf Channel and Peacock Network
How to Watch: In case of changes, visit: (PGATourCom)
The Basics:
After Round One is completed, The Genesis Invitational continues with Round Two Tee Times today at 10:40am to 3:26pm (ET)
Weather: Today’s forecast is calling for mostly cloudy skies in the morning, turning to susnhine in the afternoon. Cool (43-degrees) temps in the morning but highs reaching 58 degrees. Winds at 4-to-7 mph.
PGA Tour Brunch will post by 10:00am (ET) on Saturday.
Last Year’s Leaderboard (from Torrey Pines) - (link)
Two Years Ago Leaderboard (from Riviera CC) - (link)
Last Week’s Leaderboard from Pebble Beach: (link)
This Week’s Leaderboard: (link)
The Genesis Invitational - Field and Tee Times
The Field: (link)
Tee Times: (link)
What They’re Saying:
Rory Handles Rain; Shares Clubhouse Lead (PGATourCom)
How to Watch R-2 on Friday (PGATourCom)
Rai Takes (Partial) Overnight Lead at Genesis (Golf Week)
Scottie with R-1 Blues; Sits Last (Golf Week)
CBS Sports Golf HQ - (CBS Sports)
On This Day in Golf History:
February 20, 1994 - Scott Hoch broke out of a five year winless drought to score a victory at The Bob Hope Desert Classic by shooting a final round (70) to defeat Fuzzy Zoeller, Jim Gallagher Jr. and Lennie Clements by three strokes. Hoch hadn’t won on the tour since the 1989 Las Vegas Invitational. (Courtesy of Randy Walker), Author of On This Day in Golf History, available via Amazon.com and by clicking HERE
Parting Putt:
PGA TOUR Brunch is brought to you by Digital Sports Desk. Subscriptions to PGA Tour Brunch are the perfect gift for your friends or family members who love pro golf. This e-newsletter is not affiliated with the PGA Tour organization.