Associated Press
ERIN, Wis. (AP) – Erin Hills played like a pushover for a U.S. Open.
Check out the score of Rickie Fowler, who matched the U.S. Open scoring record to par for the opening round with a 7-under 65. Right behind him were 43 other players who broke par, breaking a championship record that had stood for 27 years. Adam Hadwin tied a U.S. Open record with six straight birdies.
Erin Hills also played like a beast.
Look no further than Rory McIlroy, the No. 2 player in the world, who didn't hit a fairway after the 10th hole, shot 42 on the back nine and posted a 78, his worst score in 27 rounds at the U.S. Open. Jason Day made two triple bogeys and closed with a birdie to avoid the indignity of shooting 80. He still had his worst score in a U.S. Open.
There were as many amateurs who broke par as players in the top 10 in the world - two each.
On a wild day of highs and lows - and even a commercial blimp that crashed and caught fire outside the golf course during the round - Fowler emerged with a one-shot lead over Paul Casey and U.S. Open rookie Xander Schauffele in a most peculiar debut for the 11-year-old golf course.
"Definitely not U.S. Open-like," Marc Leishman said.
Defending champion Dustin Johnson made only one birdie in his round of 75. Taking the long walk to sign his card, he looked back at the rain-softened course and mild breeze and said wistfully, "You won't get a better day for scoring."
No one took advantage like Fowler.
Fowler, who shared the 36-hole lead at the Masters in April, never came seriously close to bogey because he was never in trouble. He kept it in the short grass, the secret to Erin Hills that wouldn't appear to be that difficult with some of the widest fairways for this major.
"You don't get many rounds at the U.S. Open that are stress-free," Fowler said.
Fowler's seven birdies were from no more than 12 feet, including three in a row around the turn. His 7-under par tied the record to par for the first round of a U.S. Open held by Jack Nicklaus and Tom Weiskopf, who each shot 7-under 63 at Baltusrol in 1980. He also joined McIlroy (2011 at Congressional) and Tiger Woods (2000 at Pebble Beach) as the only players to shoot 66 or better in the opening round without a bogey.
"It is always cool to be part of some sort of history in golf," Fowler said. "But I'd rather be remembered for something that's done on Sunday."
The 44 sub-par rounds broke the first-round mark of 39 at Medinah in 1990.
Day fell back when it took him three chips from behind the green at No. 4 to get it on the putting surface, leading to the first of his two triple bogeys.
"I just played bad golf, man," Day said.
McIlroy joked earlier in the week that anyone who couldn't hit such wide fairways "might as well pack your bags and go home." He spent all day in the knee-high fescue.
"You cannot play this golf course if you're not in position off the tee, and I wasn't in position," McIlroy said. "Obviously, I paid the price for it today."
Casey started eagle-birdie and finished with two birdies over the final four holes for his 66.
"I was just trying to have half as good a round as Rickie had," said Casey, who played in the afternoon. "The scoring was so good this morning. I was happy it stayed benign for us, and I capitalized on it."
Schauffele had a chance to tie Fowler for the lead until his 12-foot birdie putt on the par-3 ninth slid by on the right.
The opening round was without Phil Mickelson for the first time since 1993. He was in California for his daughter's high school graduation, hopeful for enough of a weather delay to jet across the country to Wisconsin. But as the sun rose over Erin Hills, and the forecast was for no rain, Mickelson withdrew.
More startling than the low scores was smoke rising from about a half-mile away when a commercial blimp, not affiliated with the tournament, crashed into a field and burst into flames. The pilot, the only one aboard the blimp operated by Florida-based AirSign, was being treated for injuries.
"I was teeing off and I looked up and saw it on fire, and I felt sick to my stomach," Jamie Lovemark said.
On the golf course, there was only a barrage of birdies.
Hadwin made his six straight birdies from No. 18 through No. 5. The Canadian was 100 feet away for birdie on No. 6 and burned the edge of the cup on that one, except that it ran by some 7 feet and he three-putted for bogey.
"You don't often see that in a U.S. Open," Hadwin said.
The course was set up at 7,845 yards, the longest of any major. Length wasn't the issue. It was sporadic storms earlier in the week that has softened the greens. One example of that was Fowler hitting 3-wood into the green on the 632-yard 18th hole, with a breeze at his back. His ball landed on the green and only rolled out about 10 feet. On typical U.S. Open greens, that would have run all the way off the back of the green.
Still to be determined is what kind of test Erin Hills can present the rest of the week, especially with more rain on the way Friday and Saturday afternoon.
U.S. OPEN
At Erin Hills
Erin, Wis.
Purse: $12 million
Yardage: 7,741;Par 72 (36-36)
First Round
a-denotes amateur
Rickie Fowler................................33-32—65
Paul Casey ...................................32-34—66
Xander Schauffele........................32-34—66
Brian Harman...............................35-32—67
Tommy Fleetwood........................34-33—67
Brooks Koepka .............................34-33—67
Patrick Reed.................................36-32—68
Kevin Na.......................................35-33—68
Marc Leishman.............................33-35—68
Adam Hadwin...............................31-37—68
Jamie Lovemark...........................34-35—69
J.B. Holmes..................................32-37—69
Lee Westwood..............................36-33—69
Andrew Johnston.........................34-35—69
Si Woo Kim ..................................36-33—69
a-Scottie Scheffler.......................36-33—69
Bernd Wiesberger ........................35-34—69
Charley Hoffman..........................36-34—70
Brandt Snedeker..........................35-35—70
Ernie Els.......................................32-38—70
Jack Maguire................................37-33—70
Brandon Stone.............................32-38—70
William McGirt.............................37-33—70
Sergio Garcia................................35-35—70
Jim Furyk.....................................34-36—70
Matt Fitzpatrick...........................35-35—70
a-Cameron Champ........................37-33—70
Derek Barron................................36-34—70
Kevin Dougherty ..........................38-33—71
Davis Love IV...............................36-35—71
Thomas Aiken ..............................37-34—71
Zach Johnson...............................35-36—71
Angel Cabrera..............................36-35—71
Tyson Alexander...........................35-36—71
Stephan Jaeger............................35-36—71
Brendan Steele.............................34-37—71
Russell Henley..............................34-37—71
Harris English...............................36-35—71
Charl Schwartzel..........................37-34—71
Shane Lowry ................................37-34—71
Byeong Hun An............................35-36—71
Ryan Brehm.................................35-36—71
Jonathan Randolph......................37-34—71
Trey Mullinax ...............................38-33—71
Yusaku Miyazato ..........................35-37—72
Hideto Tanihara ...........................36-36—72
Rafa Cabrera Bello .......................37-35—72
Gary Woodland.............................37-35—72
Martin Laird.................................35-37—72
Branden Grace .............................33-39—72
Martin Kaymer.............................37-35—72
Eddie Pepperell............................34-38—72
Yuta Ikeda...................................41-31—72
George Coetzee............................38-34—72
Keegan Bradley............................36-36—72
Adam Scott..................................39-33—72
Bill Haas.......................................36-36—72
Scott Piercy .................................37-35—72
Justin Rose ..................................36-36—72
Roberto Diaz................................37-35—72
Jordan Niebrugge.........................37-36—73
Whee Kim ....................................38-35—73
Aaron Rai.....................................37-36—73
David Lingmerth ..........................36-37—73
Michael Putnam...........................38-35—73
Alex Noren...................................37-36—73
Bud Cauley...................................35-38—73
Russell Knox.................................35-38—73
Jordan Spieth...............................38-35—73
Daniel Miernicki ...........................38-35—73
Tyler Light....................................39-34—73
Chris Wood ..................................37-36—73
Satoshi Kodaira............................34-39—73
Daniel Summerhays......................36-37—73
Richie Ramsay..............................38-35—73
C.T. Pan .......................................37-36—73
Justin Thomas..............................38-35—73
Steve Stricker...............................37-36—73
a-Maverick McNealy......................38-35—73
a-Mason Andersen........................35-38—73
a-Alex Smalley..............................38-35—73
Talor Gooch..................................34-40—74
Ted Potter Jr................................35-39—74
Andres Romero ............................37-37—74
Haotong Li...................................38-36—74
Bradley Dredge ............................38-36—74
Hideki Matsuyama........................38-36—74
Kevin Kisner.................................37-37—74
Matt Kuchar.................................36-38—74
Francesco Molinari.......................37-37—74
Webb Simpson.............................36-38—74
Lucas Glover.................................38-36—74
a-Joaquin Niemann.......................36-38—74
Chan Kim.....................................35-39—74
Troy Merritt .................................35-39—74
Bryson DeChambeau....................37-37—74
Henrik Stenson.............................40-34—74
Louis Oosthuizen..........................38-36—74
Peter Uihlein................................36-38—74
Stewart Cink................................35-39—74
Kevin Chappell .............................37-37—74
Brice Garnett ...............................40-35—75
Paul Dunne..................................36-39—75
Chez Reavie..................................38-37—75
Jason Kokrak................................37-38—75
Ross Fisher...................................36-39—75
a-Scott Gregory............................41-34—75
Dustin Johnson ............................36-39—75
a-Christopher Crawford................39-36—75
Wade Ormsby...............................39-36—75
Oliver Bekker ...............................37-38—75
Nick Flanagan ..............................39-36—75
Bubba Watson..............................37-38—75
Shugo Imahira.............................39-37—76
Matt Wallace................................39-37—76
Jason Dufner................................38-38—76
Jeunghun Wang...........................36-40—76
Tyrrell Hatton...............................39-37—76
Thomas Pieters............................37-39—76
Jon Rahm.....................................36-40—76
Graeme McDowell........................38-38—76
Max Greyserman..........................37-39—76
Corey Conners..............................39-37—76
Kyle Thompson.............................40-36—76
Sean O’Hair..................................38-38—76
Pat Perez.....................................37-39—76
Wesley Bryan ...............................38-38—76
Roberto Castro.............................40-36—76
Emiliano Grillo..............................40-36—76
Sam Ryder....................................40-36—76
Daniel Chopra ..............................39-38—77
a-Stewart Hagestad .....................39-38—77
Gene Sauers.................................36-41—77
Joel Stalter...................................39-38—77
Matt Campbell.............................37-40—77
a-Sahith Theegala ........................41-36—77
Ben Kohles...................................38-39—77
Gregory Bourdy............................39-38—77
Jhonattan Vegas ..........................39-38—77
Alexander Levy.............................38-39—77
Jimmy Walker ..............................39-38—77
Andy Pope....................................39-38—77
Ryan Palmer.................................40-38—78
J.T. Poston...................................42-36—78
a-Scott Harvey.............................39-39—78
a-Brad Dalke ................................40-38—78
Daniel Berger...............................37-41—78
Rory McIlroy................................36-42—78
a-John Oda...................................39-39—78
Roman Robledo............................39-39—78
Billy Horschel...............................42-37—79
Jason Day.....................................39-40—79
Danny Willett...............................40-41—81
a-Walker Lee................................40-41—81
Brian Stuard.................................41-40—81
Garrett Osborn.............................41-42—83
TEE TIMES
June 15-18
At Erin Hills, Wisc.
All Times EDT
(a-amateur)
Friday
First Hole-10th Hole
7:45 a.m. — Jack Maguire, United
States-;Corey Conners, Canada;Ben Kohles, United
States.
7:56 a.m. — Eddie Pepperell, England;Chan
Kim, United States;Gregory Bourdy, France.
8:07 a.m. — Jhonattan Vegas, Venezuela;
Yuta Ikeda, Japan;Sean O’Hair, United States.
8:18 a.m. — Andrew Johnston,
England;Brian Stuard, United States;George
Coetzee, South Africa.
8:29 a.m. — Marc Leishman, Australia;Pat
Perez, United States;Si Woo Kim, South
Korea.
8:40 a.m. — Russell Henley, United States;
a-Scottie Scheffler, United States;Harris
English, United States.
8:51 a.m. — Bubba Watson, United
States;Adam Scott, Australia;Sergio Garcia,
Spain.
9:02 a.m. — Henrik Stenson, Sweden;Charl
Schwartzel, South Africa;Louis Oosthuizen,
South Africa.
9:13 a.m. — Jimmy Walker, United
States-;Justin Thomas, United States;Paul Casey,
England.
9:24 a.m. — Jason Day, Australia;Justin
Rose, England;Rory McIlroy, Northern
Ireland.
9:35 a.m. — Steve Stricker, United
States-;Stewart Cink, United States;Phil Mickelson,
United States.
9:46 a.m. — Ryan Brehm, United States;
a-John Oda, United States;Jonathan Randolph,
United States.
9:57 a.m. — a-Mason Andersen, United
States;Derek Barron, United States;Roman
Robledo, United States.
1:30 p.m. — Jordan Niebrugge, United
States;Talor Gooch, United States;Kevin
Dougherty, United States.
1:41 p.m. — Andres Romero,
Argentina;Brice Garnett, United States;Davis Love
IV, United States. 1:52 p.m. — Yusaku Miyazato, Japan;J.T.
2 Poston :03 p. , m United . — David States Lingmerth ;Aaron Rai , Sweden , England ;Paul .
Dunne, Ireland;Li Haotong, China.
2:14 p.m. — a-Stewart Hagestad, United
States;Chez Reavie, United States;Gene
Sauers, United States.
2:25 p.m. — Brandt Snedeker, United
States;Alex Noren, Sweden;Tyrrell Hatton,
England.
2:36 p.m. — Rafa Cabrera Bello, Spain;
Thomas Pieters, Belgium;Brooks Koepka, United
States.
2:47 p.m. — Gary Woodland, United
States;J.B. Holmes, United States;Jason
Kokrak, United States.
2:58 p.m. — Russell Knox, Scotland;a-Scott
Gregory, England;Martin Laird, Scotland.
3:09 p.m. — Kevin Kisner, United
States-;Billy Horschel, United States;Branden
Grace, South Africa.
3:20 p.m. — Webb Simpson, United
States;Ernie Els, South Africa;Lucas Glover,
United States.
3:31 p.m. — Tyson Alexander, United
States;a-Chris Crawford, United States;Max
Greyserman, United States.
3:42 p.m. — Matthew Campbell, United
States;Garrett Osborn, United States,
a-Walker Lee, United States.
10th Hole-First Hole
7:45 a.m. — Wade Ormsby, Australia;Oliver
Bekker, South Africa;Kyle Thompson, United
States.
7:56 a.m. — Brandon Stone, South
Africa;Troy Merritt, United States;Chris Wood,
England.
8:07 a.m. — Satoshi Kodaira, Japan;Daniel
Summerhays, United States;Alexander Levy,
France.
8:18 a.m. — William McGirt, United
States;Keegan Bradley, United States;Kevin
Na, United States.
8:29 a.m. — a-Brad Dalke, United
States-;Wesley Bryan, United States;Brendan
Steele, United States.
8:40 a.m. — Nick Flanagan, Australia;Richie
Ramsay, Scotland;Bryson DeChambeau,
United States.
8:51 a.m. — Daniel Berger, United
States-;Roberto Castro, United States;Bill Haas,
United States.
9:02a.m. — Adam Hadwin, Canada;Emiliano
Grillo, Argentina;C.T. Pan, Taiwan.
9:13 a.m. — Scott Piercy, United
States-;Shane Lowry, Ireland;Jim Furyk, United
States.
9:24 a.m. — Matt Fitzpatrick, England;Peter
Uihlein, United States;Byeong Hun An,
South Korea.
9:35 a.m. — Kevin Chappell, United
States;a-Maverick McNealy, United
States-;Bernd Wiesberger, Austria.
9:46 a.m. — Xander Schauffele, United
States;Trey Mullinax, United States;
a-Cameron Champ, United States.
9:57 a.m. — Sam Ryder, United States;
a-Alex Smalley, United States;Andy Pope,
United States.
1:30 p.m. — Whee Kim, South Korea;Ted
Potter Jr., United States;Daniel Chopra,
Sweden.
1:41 p.m. — Shugo Imahira, Japan;Ryan
Palmer, United States;Matthew Wallace,
England.
1:52 p.m. — Charley Hoffman, United
States;Jason Dufner, United States;Hideto
Tanihara, Japan.
2:03 p.m. — Jeunghun Wang, South
Korea;Thomas Aiken, South Africa;Bradley
Dredge, Wales.
2:14 p.m. — a-Scott Harvey, United
States;Jamie Lovemark, United
States-;Michael Putnam, United States.
2:25 p.m. — Brian Harman, United
States-;Tommy Fleetwood, England;Bud Cauley,
United States.
2:36 p.m. — Hideki Matsuyama, Japan;
Rickie Fowler, United States;Jon Rahm, Spain.
2:47 p.m. — Lee Westwood, England;Ross
Fisher, England;Graeme McDowell, Northern
Ireland.
2:58 p.m. — Danny Willett, England;Zach
Johnson, United States;Angel Cabrera,
Argentina.
3:09 p.m. — Matt Kuchar, United
States-;Francesco Molinari, Italy;Patrick Reed,
United States.
3:20 p.m. — Martin Kaymer, Germany;
Jordan Spieth, United States;Dustin Johnson,
United States.
3:31 p.m. — a-Joaquin Niemann,
Chile;Stephan Jaeger, Germany;Joel Stalter,
France.
3:42 p.m. — Daniel Miernicki, United
States;a-Sahith Theegala, United
States-;Tyler Light, United States.
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