John Daly II (Ty Baird Media Photo)

Daly is joined by Jack Burbee, Noah Kumar, Jackson Finney, and Nikita Gubenko at the top of the leaderboard heading into the second round.

Daly recorded four birdies through the first 17 holes and then made an eagle on the par-5 No. 18 heading into the clubhouse, ensuring dinner would taste that much better with that finish.

The Arkansas junior and Clearwater, Fla., native teamed up with his two-time major-winning father to win the 2021 PNC Challenge with an event-record score of 27-under par for 36 holes. The duo were runners-up in 2022 and 2018. Daly recently finished T6 at the Orlando International Amateur and is currently ranked No. 177 in the Golfweek/AmateurGolf.com U.S. Rankings.

Grant Lester is in solo second place at 5-under, while Chase Haygood, Cayden Pope, Jacob Settles, Jason Gordon, Troy Vannucci, and Max Barile are all T7 at 4-under.

42 golfers shot even par or better in the first round and are within six shots of the leaders in the Championship Division, making for a captivating final two rounds.

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In the Mid-Amateur Division, Troy Vannucci leads by four shots after an opening round of 4-under 68. He recorded five birdies and one bogey, including birdies on holes No. 16 and 18, to close his round strong. The 2022 Golf Association of Philadelphia Mid-Amateur winner finished T2 at the 2023 New Year's Invitational. 

Justin Grant and David Lang are T2 at even par and four shots back of Vannucci.

In the Senior Division, Richard Barkley leads by two shots after an opening round of 3-under 69. Jay Lindner is in solo second place at 1-under, and Adam Creighton is in solo third place at even par.

St. Petersburg Country Club recently underwent a major renovation to prepare for the 99th and 100th year of the tournament, and the LECOM Suncoast Classic, a tournament on the Korn Ferry Tour, has awarded a highly sought-after exemption to the winner of the 2025 iteration of the event.

The New Year's Invitational, played at St. Petersburg Country Club in Florida, has been held every year since 1927. It is the oldest continuously running invitational tournament in the Southeast and one of the oldest in the country. Originally, it was one of a number of tournaments held in the winter months at clubs around the area. The other events, in fact, several of the other clubs, have long departed.

From its inception until 1956, the tournament was a match-play event. The first winner was Clearwater resident A.T. Cooper. The 1928 winner, Johnny Revolta, was a combination course ranger and locker room attendant at Lakewood Country Club at the time he won.

Later, Revolta became a very successful professional, winning the PGA Championship in 1935 and establishing quite a reputation as a short-game instructor. In 1938, he celebrated his return to St. Petersburg and Lakewood with a win at the St. Pete Open, a regular stop on the fledgling PGA tour.

Bob Goalby was the first winner after the change to stroke play. He went on to a lengthy PGA career, which included a 1968 Masters green jacket. Between 1972 and 1991, Buddy Alexander, son of our longtime pro-Skip Alexander, won six titles, the most win for any player since the World War II era.

During the past two decades, the championship has been dominated by collegiate players, including winner Ryuji Imada in 1996, Jeff Klauk in 2000 (with a tournament record 21- under par 267), J.B. Holmes in 2003, Brandt Snedeker in 2004, and Jeff Overton in 2005.