With 65, Rose leads scoring onslaught on benign Pebble Beach
PEBBLE BEACH — There would be no debacle, nothing to distract golf lovers from fully enjoying the visual bounty that is the Pebble Beach Golf Links.
The U.S. Golf Association took extensive measures to ensure that for the first round of the 119th U.S. Open on Thursday.
It showered the course with abundant water, and the weather did its part on a day when the golfers might only complain about barking sea lions.
Only a hint of breeze in comfortable, shirt-sleeve temperatures made Pebble Beach vulnerable for the world’s best.
With a late-afternoon birdie on the 18th hole, Justin Rose took sole possession of the lead by firing a 6-underpar 65. That matched Tiger Woods’ opening round in his runaway victory in 2000 as the lowest U.S. Open score ever at Pebble.
Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele, Louis Oosthuizen and Aaron Wise each shot 66 in a scoring onslaught that was reminiscent of the PGA Tour’s February tournament here.
Thirty-nine players scored in red figures, and there were 17 eagles made — the most in the U.S. Open in 50 years.
It didn’t hurt the appeal of the leaderboard.
Beyond Rose, a former U.S. Open champion currently ranked fourth in the world, there were four other major winners among the top 15: Oosthuizen, and with 68s, Rory McIlroy, Henrik Stenson and Francesco Molinari.
Among another dozen at 69 was the man who will not go away in majors — Brooks Koepka.
In opening his effort to become the first player in more than 100 years to win three straight U.S. Opens, the champion of four of the last eight majors birdied four of his first six holes, but stumbled with two late bogeys.
Not among the immediate contenders was Woods. By hitting fewer than 50% of the greens in regulation (8 of 18), the reigning Masters champion scrambled mightily to shoot 1-under 70. Woods, who was tied for 28th, finished his round with 11 straight pars.
This first act was exactly what the USGA wanted and needed.
“They can do whatever they want with it from here,” said McIlroy, who carded his lowest score in the first round of the U.S. Open since he won at Congressional in 2011.
“It’s not as if you’re starting with a course that’s in the condition like Sunday, and then you get three days and it sort of starts to get away from you. If they want to dial it up, they just don’t have to put much water on it (Thursday night), and we’ll come out (Friday) and it will play a little trickier.
“From the scores I’m seeing, that’s really what I expect for (Friday).”