Dustin Johnson, seeking to expunge the memory of last year’s US Open near miss, fired a flawless three-under par 67 yesterday to put the pressure on little-known first-round leader Andrew Landry.
World number six Johnson – who three-putted the 72nd hole to finish tied for second behind Jordan Spieth at Chambers Bay last year – was impressive in posting three birdies without a bogey on an Oakmont course that remained formidable despite being softened by thunderstorms that caused scheduling havoc on Thursday.
He joined former world number one Lee Westwood at three-under, tied for second a stroke behind Landry – whose four-under 66 was the lowest US Open first round score posted at Oakmont, which is hosting the tournament for the ninth time.
With organisers scrambling to get things back on schedule, Johnson was among roughly half the field heading straight into the second round on Friday afternoon after playing all 18 holes of the first.
“It’s going to be a long day,” said Johnson.”You still do everything exactly how you would if you were just playing 18.”
Landry and Westwood had both returned yesterday morning to complete their storm-disrupted first rounds.
They were to start the second round today and follow up straight away with the third.
Landry rolled in a 10-foot birdie putt at his final hole, the par-four ninth, in his only shot of the day.
The 28-year-old Texan, ranked 624th in the world, insisted he didn’t lose any sleep anticipating the putt.
“It was a pretty easy putt to make,” said Landry, who was briefly three strokes clear of the field.
Westwood closed the gap with a birdie-birdie finish.
Like Landry he capped his round with a birdie at the ninth, the 477-yard hole that was playing as the toughest on the course in the first round.
Westwood, like Johnson still seeking a first major title, had three birdies in the final six holes of a round that he jump-started with an eagle two at the par-four 14th on Thursday. “I hit it close, gave myself lots of chances,” said Westwood, who needed just 26 putts on Oakmont’s treacherous greens.
“When it’s wet like this it’s more scoreable,” Westwood said, but he added that Oakmont still had some teeth.
“It tests every aspect of your game to the limit,” he said.
Spain’s Sergio Garcia shook off a slow start to head a group sharing fourth on two-under 68 alongside Ireland’s Shane Lowry and American Scott Piercy.
Garcia was two-over through three holes, but picked up five birdies the rest of the way. “I felt like I hit a lot of good shots, made a couple of good putts and a couple of good up-and-downs when I needed it and I’m very happy with the final result,” Garcia said.