The China Mail - Scheffler opens with birdie as US Open leader Spaun starts late

Spaun's four-under par 66 opening round on Thursday matched the lowest first-round score in a US Open at Oakmont and was only the eighth bogey-free first round ever conjured at the iconic layout.

The American's career-low major round put him one stroke ahead of South African Thriston Lawrence with five-time major winner Brooks Koepka and South Koreans Im Sung-jae and Kim Si-woo sharing third on 68.

Spaun, Lawrence and Kim were set for late tee times while early starts were made by Koepka, Im and Rahm, a two-time major winner lurking three adrift after a 69 on Thursday.

Koepka opened Friday with a bogey at the 10th hole, finding right rough and coming up short of the green then missing a 10-foot par putt, but answered with a birdie at 11, sinking an 11-foot putt to return to two-under.

Im also stayed at two-under with a par on the first hole.

Rahm found a right fairway bunker off the first tee then left greenside rough and missed an 18-foot par putt, settling for bogey.

Scheffler opened Friday off the back nine by sinking a birdie putt at 10 from just beyond 20 feet as he tried to rebound from an opening 73, his worst first-round score relative to par in 24 major starts.

Scheffler has won three of his past four starts, including last month's PGA Championship, and hopes to become the first back-to-back major winner since Jordan Spieth in 2015.

Other US stars struggled at Oakmont with third-ranked Xander Schauffele, the reigning British Open champion, on 72, defending champion Bryson DeChambeau on 73 and six-time major winner Phil Mickelson on 74.

England's Justin Rose was on 77 with Ireland's Shane Lowry on 79.

World number two Rory McIlroy, who won the Masters in April to complete a career Grand Slam, was set for an afternoon tee time following an opening 74 including four bogeys and a double bogey in his final nine holes.

The five-time major winner from Northern Ireland shared 62nd after round one, with only the top 60 and ties set to make the 36-hole cut.

Only 10 players cracked 70 in the first round, but 11 of the past 12 US Open winners broke 70 in their first rounds.

Y.Su--ThChM