Jon Rahm opens US Open in attack mode, JJ Spaun takes early lead

(AFP) In the hunt for his first Major title since 2023, Spanish golfer Jon Rahm got off to a great start at the U.S. Open on Thursday, while favorites such as Scottie Scheffler struggled.

Rahm concluded the first round at the fearsome Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania with a score of 69 (-1), one under par, which put him in a tie for sixth place.

The lead was taken by American J.J. Spaun, No. 25 in the world ranking, who stunned with a score of 66 (-4).

With a four-birdie, bogey-free round, Spaun matched the best first-round score in any of the 10 editions of the U.S. Open contested at Oakmont.

"I'm just overly pleased with how I started. I hit a lot of good shots and tried to capitalize on any birdie opportunities, which aren't very many out here," said the Californian, winner of one PGA tour event but without any top-20 Major finishes.

Just one stroke behind was South African Thriston Lawrence, another unexpected presence near the top of the leaderboard at a Major, and two behind were South Koreans Im Sung-jae and Kim Si-woo, as well as American Brooks Koepka, two-time champion of the tournament (2017 and 2018).

Rahm, winner in 2021, also wowed the crowd in a scintillating start to his round in which he strung together a birdie and an eagle on the third and fourth holes.

The Spaniard then slowed the pace by making two bogeys on the sixth and 11th holes but remained near the top of the tournament, the third of the four Major Championships on the calendar.

"I'm extremely happy. I played some incredible golf to shoot 1-under, which we don't usually say, right? Not many things I could really say about today," the 2023 Masters champion noted.

"Just a really good round, really good golf in general. Everything felt good. The thing I would say made it really good was how well I did off the tee. I would say hit pretty much every tee shot in the fairway or on the first cut and far down there at that. So that certainly made the day a lot easier," explained the only Spanish champion of this tournament, which is celebrating its 125th edition.

Scheffler in trouble

Feared for its ultra-fast greens, tricky bunkers and thick, high rough, the Oakmont course only allowed a dozen players to shoot under par and wreaked havoc among most of the major contenders.

American Scheffler had a very tough road to a second consecutive major title, following his victory at the PGA Championship in May.

The world No. 1 shot an opening round 73 (+3) in an uncharacteristically up-and-down round, with three birdies and six bogeys, leaving him in 49th place.

"I made some silly mistakes out there, but at the same time, I made some key putts and some good momentum saves in my round, but overall just need to be a little sharper," said Scheffler, a winner in three of his last four tournaments played.

His compatriot Bryson DeChambeau, defending champion, recorded the same score in another unideal start.

"Pretty disappointed with how I played," acknowledged DeChambeau, a big name on the Saudi LIV Golf circuit alongside Rahm.

Northern Irish star Rory McIlroy, winner of the Masters in April, got off to an even worse start with a 74 (+4), putting him in 62nd place.

Among the Hispanic American representation, Argentine Emiliano Grillo and Mexican Carlos Ortiz shot 71 (+1) placing them in a tie for 20th place.

Chilean Joaquín Niemann, who arrived in top form after winning his fourth tournament of the year on the LIV Golf circuit, will have to sweat to make Friday's cut by finishing in 70th place with an opening round 75 (+5).

The start of the U.S. Open also yielded the fourth albatross in the history of the event, the work of American Patrick Reed with an accurate 286-yard shot on the par-5 fourth hole.