Justin Rose makes the most of benign conditions with fine start at US Open
As the world No 4, it might seem odd to suggest that Justin Rose was in danger of becoming the forgotten heavyweight of professional golf. But still, there was a palpable sense here at the conclusion of the first day of the 119th US Open, that with a record-equalling 65 the Englishman had sent out a timely reminder of his quality.
Rose, 38, birdied the last three holes to reach six-under and take a one-shot lead over a leaderboard loaded with big names. In a tie for second come the Americans Rickie Fowler, Xander Schaufelle and Aaron Wise, as well as the South African Louis Oosthuizen, while the group on three-under include Rory McIlroy, Francesco Molinari and HenriK Stenson.
A shot further back is Brooks Koepka, who made a satisfactory start in his attempt to become the first payer in more than 100 years to win three US Opens in succession, with another Englishman in Matt Fitzpatrick and on one-under Is Tiger Woods.
In all, there are 39 players in red figures after an opening round in which Pebble Beach invited to be attacked. However, none of the field took advantage as greatly as Rose.
Even with the win at Torrey Pines in January, by Rose’s high standards it has been a relatively quiet first five months of the year. This model of consistency uncharacteristically missed the cut at the Masters and finished in a tie for 29th at last month’s USPGA and in the drama of all those fireworks being let off by Koepka, Woods and McIlroy, the former world No 1 has largely been in the shadows.
Yet Rose re-emerged into the spotlight rather emphatically on Thursday, playing with Woods and with a 10-footer on the 18th, equalling the lowest round ever in a US Open at Pebble Beach set by the 15-time major-winner on his way to a record 15-shot victory in 2000. Rose reeled off five birdies and an eagle to go with a solitary bogey.
“It was a fun day,” the 2013 champion said. “I was trying to stay patient and kept up-and-downing to retain the momentum and then I got rewarded with a hot finish. Birdieing those last three took a good round to a great round. Whatever transpires the rest of the week, shooting 65 in the first round of a US Open and match Tiger’s record while playing with him is a cool moment.”
So many of the competitors rushed under par that this was soon christened “The Pebble Dash” and everyone’s score had to be weighed against the benign nature of the test. However the smile on McIlroy’s face was completely understandable.
“Be the hare not the tortoise” - that was McIlroy’s mantra as he set off looking for his first major win in almost five years. At the Champions’ Dinner on Tuesday, Johnny Miller told McIlroy what he already knew; that the 73 at Augusta and the 72 at Bethpage had left the world No 3 with too much to do at the Master and the USPGA.
In McIlroy’s eyes, a fast start was vital and so he refused to dilly or dally despite a bogey at his first hole, the 10th. From that difficult par four, McIlroy did not drop another shot, reeling off birdies and 13 pars.
It all added up to his lowest opening round in the US Open since the 65 that sent him on his way to his first major success, The Processional at Congressional, in 2011, and when one considers that he had been 34-over for his seven US Open first rounds since, this was highly welcome.
"It's important for everybody to begin quickly, but especially for me trying to get my way back to winning these big events,” McIlroy said. “In this year's first two majors I found myself over par and when the courses are that tough it’s so hard to chase. To be right in the tournament from the start is a nice position to be in.”
There were some wonderful strikes from McIlroy, building on his seven-stroke waltz at last week’s Canadian Open. The highlight was on the 208-yard 17th. With its angled, sliver-like green, the par three is one of the most difficult challenges at Pebble Beach, but with a towering six iron he conjured it to within nine feet.
It was the type of two that one would underline at least twice on the scorecard, but for McIlroy the most pleasing aspect was his general control around this stunning layout on the Monterey Peninsula. If he made a mistake - and he will always tends do - his ultra-sharp shortgame came to the rescue. This was most evident on the par-three fifth where McIlroy missed the green into the heavy rough on the left, from where he could only shift his ball a few yards to the fringe. No matter. He holed the resulting 15-footer for the par.
“I did what I wanted to do which was hit it in the fairways for the most part, hit a lot of greens and when I didn't I was able to get it up and down,” he said. “I’m very happy."
It was easy to get carried away and reflect that the only other three times he had began a major with a 68 or lower, he actually went on to win, but in truth, Pebble was ever so compliant and will, almost certainly, become increasingly difficult as the rounds progress.
The conditions were flat calm, with barely a ruffle troubling Stillwater Cove, and with the USGA determined to avoid another set-up controversy after the mutinous mayhem of recent years, the fairways and greens were accepting and the pin positions accessible.
“It's very, very soft for a US Open and the greens are absolutely perfect,” McIlroy said. “However, saying that, there are a few tee shots out there that are easy to hit it into the Pacific Ocean.”
Koepka was content with his 69. The world No 1 birdied four of the first six holes and after he ran away with the USPGA at Bethpage it appeared ominously familiar. But he dropped two shots in the last six holes and was typically sanguine after, despite making a fine par on the 18th after playing his approach from a cart path.
“Yeah, I would have liked to have shot a couple more birdies, but considering how I hit it coming in, it’s ok,” he said. “I didn't shoot myself out of it. I'm right there. And I felt the most comfortable on the greens this week of all the majors we've played so far.”
Woods looked tired following his 70 and that is hardly surprising considering all the par saves he was forced to pull off. The 43-year-old only hit half of the greens in regulation, continually coming up short with his irons, but he single-putted 11 times in a vintage Woods display on the greens.
“I am pretty pleased to get in under par,” Woods said. “I was just hanging in there, just typical of the US Open. The first seven holes you can get it going, but nobody was making hay after that.”
