Winners and Losers After First Round of U.S. Open: A Fan's Take

The first round of the U.S. Open is in the books and a surprising name sits on top of the leaderboard. Michael Thompson, a relative unknown with just one top-10 finish in 2012. Thompson shot a 66 to finish the first round with a three-shot lead. That margin is one of the widest ever after an opening round, but there's still a lot of golf to be played. At an event like this, no lead is safe. Thompson was certainly the biggest winner after the first round, but there were other golfers that made an impact.

Here is a look at the first-round winners and losers from the opening round of the U.S. Open:

Winner - Tiger Woods

Woods is one of the top drivers in the game so many thought he would do well at this tournament. So far, he is doing just that. After the first round, Woods is tied for second at 1-under par. He had three birdies and two bogeys in his round and outplayed most of his biggest rivals. The fact that Tiger is in the position he is in is enough to make him an early winner.

Loser - Phil Mickelson

Phil struggled during his opening round, finishing at 6-over par. With a tournament as crazy as this, Phil isn't out of the mix with that score. Still, there wasn't a whole lot to like about his round. With just one birdie and seven bogeys, it was a difficult day for the fan favorite. On the plus side, he avoided further disaster on several occasions.

Loser - Bubba Watson

It doesn't look like Watson is going to make it two major victories in a row. Playing in a group with Tiger and Phil, Watson seemed over-matched throughout the day. He started things off with a bogey and was never able to find a rhythm. Watson had just one birdie and a double bogey on the way to finishing 8-over par.

Winner - Matt Kuchar

The 2012 Players Championship winner is in good position after finishing the first round at even par. The best thing about his round was the consistency. Kuchar had two birdies and two bogeys, proving that the golf course didn't fluster him the way it did other players. Kuchar should be in the mix until the final round.

Loser - Rory McIlroy

If Rory is going to repeat, he has work cut out for him. Teeing off later in the day, the 2011 U.S. Open champ struggled from the start and never got things going. He had just one birdie and eight bogeys in his round. With a score like that, he will need to put forth a strong effort in round two if he wants to stick around for the weekend.