Kirk finishes with eagle and the lead at Sea Island PGA Tour event

Chris Kirk holed an 18-foot putt for eagle on his final hole for a 9-under-par 63 and a one-shot lead Thursday at the RSM Classic in St. Simons Island, Ga.

Kirk played the par 5s on the Plantation Course at Sea Island Golf Club in 5-under.

“I kind of hit my putter on the fringe a little bit and I wasn’t sure it was going to get there, but that was just kind of the day that it was,” Kirk said. “Even when I thought it wasn’t quite going to work out, it still went in the middle of the hole.”

The seven lowest scores of the opening round came on the Plantation Course during a picturesque afternoon on the Golden Isles.