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Happy U.S. Open Friday, everyone! Well, to everyone who didn’t drink the water near the 12th hole at Erin Hills. A report surfaced late Thursday night that E. coli bacteria was found at one of the course’s hydration stations. Combine that with a blimp crashing on Thursday and this tournament got off to a pretty rough start.
But many players fared a lot better in their first crack at Erin Hills, with a record 44 golfers breaking par in the first round. And no one played better than Rickie Fowler, who opened with a seven-under-par 65 to tie another tournament scoring record. All eyes will be on Rickie come Friday afternoon when he tees off at 2:36 PM (EDT). Amazingly, none of those 44 players breaking par were ranked in the top six in the Official World Golf Ranking. All of those guys shot over par, including a 79 and 78 from Jason Day and Rory McIlroy, respectively. Get caught up on the winners and losers from Thursday, and follow Friday’s action right here:
8:58 PM (EDT): And that’s a wrap from Friday at the U.S. Open. We’ve got a four-way tie at the top (Brooks Koepka, Paul Casey, Tommy Fleetwood and Brian Harman), and the cut line wound up at an unusually low +1 with 68 players (all within eight shots of the lead) making it to the weekend. For a recap of the day’s winners and losers, check out our latest edition of birdies and bogeys:
8:33 PM (EDT): Dustin Johnson goes over the green in two at the 672-yard, par-5 18th. But as impressive as that power display was, the World No. 1 will not make the cut. This marks the first time since the creation of the Official World Golf Ranking in 1986 that the top three players in the world (Rory McIlroy and Jason Day in addition to DJ) will all miss the cut in the same major championship.
7:51 PM (EDT): Brooks Koepka stuffed his approach on the short par-3 9th hole (his 18th), but lipped out the birdie putt and tapped in for a two-under 70. He joins Casey, Fleetwood, and Harman in a four-way tie at the top at seven-under.
Hideki Matsuyama had a prime look for an eight-under 64, which would have matched Johnny Miller’s record low in a U.S. Open, but it just burned the edge on the par-5 18th hole. He settled for the third 65 of the week, getting him to five-under for the championship and right back in the mix.
Rickie Fowler didn’t have the finish he wanted, but he’s still just one back at six-under after posting a one-over 73.
7:38 PM (EDT): Playing partners Tommy Fleetwood and Brian Harman have shot identical scores this week, five-under 67s and two-under 70s to grab a share of the lead in the clubhouse with Paul Casey at seven-under.
7:30 PM (EDT): Chez Reavie, who hasn’t played in a U.S. Open since 2012, matches Fowler’s seven-under 65 from Thursday as the low round of the week. If that wasn’t impressive enough, Reavie did it with one bogey. Meanwhile, Dustin Johnson is now in serious danger of missing the cut after making a bogey on par-5 14th to fall to three-over. If he can’t get back to one-over, all three of the top players in the world will be headed home early.
7:18 PM (EDT): How about Jamie Lovemark out of nowhere? After an up-and-down front nine, Lovemark produced a blemish-free four-under 32 on the home nine, including a bomb of a birdie putt on the 18th hole. It’s his second straight three-under 69, getting him to six-under for the tournament and just one shot back at the moment. It’s only his second appearance in the U.S. Open, the first coming in 2015 at Chambers Bay where he tied for 18th.
6:18 PM (EDT): Hideki Matsuyama drains a long birdie on 13 to move to seven under on the DAY. That puts the Japanese star at five under for the event. Moments later, playing partner Rickie Fowler makes a third straight bogey to fall to six under. Both guys are widely considered the best current golfers without a major championship.
6:07 PM (EDT): Rickie Fowler misses a short par putt on No. 12 to fall out of the lead. Remarkably, it’s Rickie’s second consecutive bogey after going the first 28 holes without making a blemish on his scorecard. Brooks Koepka leads by himself at eight under.
5:05 PM (EDT): Brooks Koepka and Rickie Fowler continue to cruise along, but no one on the course is playing better than Hideki Matsuyama. The world No. 4 struggled in his opening round Thursday, posting a two-over 74. Making the cut would be a positive on Friday, but instead Matsuyama has made six birdies on his first eight holes to get to four-under for the tournament, just five back of the lead.
4:40 PM (EDT): Rickie Fowler drains a bomb from the fringe on the par-5 7th for birdie to give him a share of the lead with Brooks Koepka. Fowler raises his hand to the crowd, but doesn’t even crack a smile. The dude is locked in.
4:27 PM (EDT): And we have a new leader! Brooks Koepka drains a 20-footer for birdie on the par-3 16th to get to nine under. Koepka now has four birdies in his opening seven holes. Meanwhile, on the other side of the course, Dustin Johnson is also off to a great start. The World No. 1 birdied his first two holes to get back to one over for the tournament.
4:02 PM (EDT): Brooks Koepka birdies the par-5 14th (his fifth hole of the day) to tie Rickie Fowler at eight under. Koepka has birdied three of his first five holes on Friday. The Ryder Cupper has finished T-4, T-18 and T-13 in his prior three U.S. Open starts.
3:39 PM (EDT): A day after a blimp (that had nothing to do with the tournament) crashed near Erin Hills and E. coli bacteria was found at one of the fan hydration stations, the USGA announces a fan at the U.S. Open has died. Here’s the statement:
3:33 PM (EDT): The USGA announces that Danny Willett has withdrawn due to a back injury. Willett, who shot 81 in the first round, also pulled out of the Players Championship last month with a back injury after a rough start. It’s been tough go for Willett, 29, since winning the 2016 Masters. Here’s what he tweeted Friday afternoon:
3:12 PM (EDT): After making par on the first hole, Rickie Fowler makes his first birdie of the day on No. 2 to grab the solo lead again at eight under. Moments later, amateur Cameron Champ (Great name!) finishes up his round with a birdie to get to five under. Champ, a rising senior at Texas A&M, celebrated his 22nd birthday on Thursday. There can be more celebrating tonight because he’ll have a late Saturday tee time.
3:02 PM (EDT): It looks like Wisconsin native Steve Stricker will hang around for the weekend at Erin Hills, giving the home crowd plenty more to cheer about. Stricker, who turned 50 in February, is at one-over through 36 holes, currently right on the cut line, after posting rounds of 73 and 72. If his score holds up, he’ll have perhaps the shot of the day to thank.
The approach on the par-5 18th hole (his ninth) nearly dropped for an eagle, which would have sent the place into a frenzy. It’s no surprise Stricker will most likely make the cut, he’s done it 17 times in his 19 U.S. Open appearances, including two top-5 finishes and four top-10s.
2:39 PM (EDT): After a brilliant opening 65, Rickie Fowler begins his second round with a perfect drive. And we learned earlier in the day that he’s hitting that club so well thanks to a former cast member of the hit TV show “The Office.” At least, that’s what actor Andy Buckley is claiming:
2:37 PM (EDT): The early marquee pairing of Rory McIlroy, Jason Day and Justin Rose finish up their second rounds — and it might be the last we’ll see of any of them this week. For certain, McIlroy (+5) and Day (+10) won’t be sticking around for the weekend. And following a bogey by Rose (+2) on his final hole, the par-3 9th, he’s in danger of missing the cut as well. For McIlroy, the 2011 U.S. Open champ, it’s the second straight missed cut in the event. It’s the first missed cut at the U.S. Open for Day, who had five top-10 finishes in six previous starts.
2:26 PM (EDT): Paul Casey finishes off one of the wildest rounds we’ll see all week. Casey made an early birdie to grab a share of the lead, but after a couple stumbles that included a triple bogey on a par 5, he dropped five shots. Casey responded, though, with five consecutive birdies that currently gives him a share of the lead at seven under with Rickie Fowler.
2:07 PM (EDT): Bill Haas shoots a bogey-free 68 to climb into the top 10 on the leader board at Erin Hills. It could have been better if not for short birdie misses on 16 and 18, but it’s still a good position for the six-time PGA Tour winner heading into the weekend. Despite all those wins, Haas only has one career top 10 at a major, but it came at last year’s Open Championship.
2:04 PM (EDT): Sergio Garcia posts 71 to get to three under heading into the weekend. The recent Masters champ is trying to become the seventh golfer to win the first two majors of the season, most recently done by Jordan Spieth in 2015.
1:51 PM (EDT): Si Woo Kim shoots 70 to finish at five under. He is currently the leader in the clubhouse, which, of course, means nothing early on a Friday afternoon. It is the latest example, however, that the 21-year-old (we can only say that until June 28) who won the Players Championship last month is the real deal. Kim is trying to match Martin Kaymer’s Players-U.S. Open double from 2014.
1:45 PM (EDT): Andrew “Beef” Johnston is making just his fifth appearance in a major championship, and only second in the U.S. Open, but he continues to prove why he became a fan favorite overnight. After Thursday’s opening round three-under 69, the Englishman followed it up with a solid one-over 73 on Friday. His round was nothing spectacular (three birdies, four bogeys), but with such little U.S. Open experience, sitting at two-under through 36 holes is an excellent spot to be in. Beef is on good pace to best his only finish in the event, which was T54 last year at Oakmont.
1:26 PM (EDT): If you were expecting Xander Schauffele to go away, think again. With a birdie on the par-4 12th, the 23-year-old PGA Tour rookie ties Rickie Fowler and Paul Casey for the lead at seven under. To learn more about Xander and some of the other unlikely names on the leader board, read this.
1:09 PM (EDT): At this exact time 47 years ago, Philip Alfred Mickelson was born. OK, so we don’t know what time it happened, but this is Phil’s 47th birthday. Of course, we wish we could watch him play Erin Hills this week, but we’ll settle for this video of him swinging a golf club as a toddler:
And here’s a look at how his pursuit of completing the career Grand Slam looks for the next few years. HINT: The venues could work in his favor.
12:44 PM (EDT): After hitting a brilliant approach from 239 yards uphill, into the wind to about 10 feet, Paul Casey converts the birdie on the par-4 3rd (his 12th hole of the day). That gives Casey five birdies in a row and puts him back at seven under, a position he’d gotten to early in the day before a triple bogey on the par-5 14th. Casey is currently tied again with Rickie Fowler, who doesn’t tee off for another two hours.
12:31 PM (EDT): Xander Schauffele had a putt on the ninth hole to take the outright lead from Rickie Fowler — but blew his chance for birdie 12 feet past. The SoCal native missed the comeback putt, to drop out of a share of the lead.
That’s Schauffele’s first bogey of the week, on a hole that co-architect Dana Fry calls “the shortest par 5 on the course.” Yes, it’s a par 3, but yes
11:58 AM (EDT): It’s been an impressive comeback from Paul Casey after his triple-bogey at No. 14 and a bogey at 15, he has birdied three in a row (17 through the first hole) to get it back to 5-under.
With the immense experience this veteran has, it’s no surprise the Englishman has recovered and put some more red numbers on the board.
11:15 AM (EDT): It’s easy to appreciate the game of Players champion Si-Woo Kim. The 21-year-old played fearlessly to win at TPC Sawgrass last month — showing the ability to pull off shots on a grand stage. We’re seeing that carry over to Erin Hills, too.
Kim just went driver off the deck on his 10th hole of the day (No. 1), to set up an eagle putt, which he cozied close for a tap-in birdie — his third straight circle on the scorecard in his second round.
If the driver-off-the-deck play sounds familiar, that’s because it helped Kim to his win at The Players.
This fearless 21-year-old is now one back of Rickie Fowler’s lead. We’ll see if he can keep threatening the lead as he closes out his second round.
10:59 AM (EDT): Paul Casey has taken a tumble down the leader board after a triple bogey. He was in the fairway after his tee shot, but his second shot went over the green and found trouble.
And then he was left with a snowman.
This hurts to look at:
10:35 AM (EDT): To most golf fans, the name Xander Schauffele is one of the unknown names on the leader board early at Erin Hills. OK, so who is this Xander guy?
The 23-year-old is currently 352nd in the world, but he finishes the first round one back of Rickie Fowler’s lead, and he remains at 6-under a couple holes into his first round.
The PGA Tour rookie has shown signs of his game this season — most notably a second-round 63 at the Mayakoba Classic, and finishing in the top five at the Sanderson Farms Championship back in October. That’s his only top-10 finish this year, but he did finish in the top 25 at the Wells Fargo Championship and made the cut at the Dean & Deluca and the FedEx St. Jude Classic.
Xander is a Southern California native, just like Fowler.
Interestingly, though most of the players near the top of the leaderboard have hit a ton of fairways this week, Schauffele ranked 127th in driving-accuracy percentage up this season, and yet he’s playing well early at Erin Hills.
10:07 AM (EDT): That didn’t last long. Casey bogeyed the par-4 12th hole after a drive into the rough. The lead is Rickie’s alone again.
Interesting to note that the course is set up pretty similarly (in length) to yesterday. Only a cumulative six yards difference.
9:50 AM (EDT): Paul Casey birdies the par-4 11th hole (his second of the day) to tie Rickie Fowler for the lead at seven under. Casey began Thursday’s first round eagle-birdie on his way to shooting 66, matching his low career score at the U.S. Open. Earlier in the week, it was Casey’s phone case, which features a scantily-clad photo of his wife that drew attention. Hey, whatever motivates you, right?
8:43 AM (EDT): Andrew “Beef” Johnston begins his second round with a par on the difficult par-4 10th. It’s been a disappointing rookie season on the PGA Tour for the fan favorite, but he’s hoping to make more noise at a major (and cause a lot of noise with “BEEEEEEF” chants from the crowd) after opening with 69. Good to see his pre-tournament short-game practice shenanigans are paying off:
8:09 AM (EDT): Here’s a look at the second-round pin sheet, courtesy of Justin Rose’s caddie, Mark Fulcher:
Did the USGA “fight back” after a first day of uncharacteristically low scoring at the U.S. Open? We’ll have to wait and see.
THURSDAY
8:42 PM (EDT): Want to catch up quick on a wild first round at Erin Hills? This recap will suffice:
8:19 PM (EDT): We’ll do you a favor and not post Justin Rose’s missed par putt at the 18th hole. The 2013 U.S. Open champ had a good look at birdie — then what looked like a tap-in par — but it wasn’t to be.
After a stellar back nine, Rose has to settle for an even-par round of 72. He has no choice, but if he did, he’d have that par putt back on the 18th hole. That was no bueno.
It was still better than his playing competitors. Jason Day actually birdied the 18th hole to avoid shooting 80 (he’d end with a +7 79), and Rory McIlroy carded a 6-over 78 to open the U.S. Open. Really no bueno.
8:10 PM (EDT): With a 6-under 66, Paul Casey continues to thrive at the majors. The Englishman has finished top 10 in the past two majors — including three of the last five — and though Casey doesn’t have a great track record in U.S. Opens, this might be a layout that fits his game.
7:57 PM (EDT): We don’t mean to pile on Rory McIlroy. But the four-time major champion’s struggles continue to get worse and worse.
Heading to the 18th tee, Rory has played his last 15 holes in eight-over par, after his eagle at the second hole.
Jason Day is helping Rory not look as bad with his even worse round (Day’s currently +8, Rory is +6) — but it’s been uggggggly for this duo at Erin Hills.
7:27 PM (EDT): Paul Casey now has the best round of the afternoon wave with a birdie at 15 — he’s 5-under now, and two back of Rickie Fowler’s lead.
Kevin Na is already in the clubhouse with his 4-under-68.
“People misunderstood me a little bit,” Kevin Na just told FOX’s Shane Bacon. “I love the U.S. Open.”
You wouldn’t have guessed that “love” would’ve been Na’s take on this tournament after his Instagram post earlier in the week. But Na’s playing like he loves this tournament, at least.
7:06 PM (EDT): Meanwhile, Adam Hadwin was 2-over through his first eight holes — until he went on one of the best runs in U.S. Open history.
The Canadian, who won the Valspar Championship earlier this year, has birdied six holes in a row, which is tied for the most ever in this championship. Here’s the card:
Hadwin JUST missed his 97-foot putt for birdie on the sixth hole, so he’ll have to settle for a tie for the record. And now Hadwin is very much in the conversation for this U.S. Open, even with a bogey at No. 6. (He’s still at 3-under.)
6:49 PM (EDT): The struggles continue for the world’s best golfers (who aren’t named Rickie Fowler).
This sums it up pretty nicely.
And here’s Rory’s tee shot at 12. He tried to carry the plateau; with a perfect tee shot, he would’ve been rewarded with another 40 yards of roll.
Problem is, he didn’t hit a perfect tee shot. So he was penalized as such.
But Rory still saved par even after chopping out sideways from the fescue, he got up and down. That’s a heckuva save to stay at 1-over.
6:22 PM (EDT): We thought Dustin Johnson’s first-round 75 was disappointing today (and it was). But Jason Day is making a much bigger mess of things on the course right now.
The World No. 3 birdied the first hole — and that has been followed by some mighty struggles — including two triple bogeys for the first time in his PGA Tour career.
Hopefully this doesn’t indicate an injury:
6:04 PM (EDT): It hasn’t been a great day for last year’s Open champion Henrik Stenson. That changed at the 11th hole, as the Iceman provided one of the best highlights of the afternoon.
5:51 PM (EDT): The marquee pairing of the afternoon finishes up a disappointing front nine. Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose made the turn in even par while Jason Day shoots a three-over-par 39. McIlroy got off to a fantastic start when he drove the green at the par-4 2nd and made a 30-footer for eagle. But he struggled hitting those wide fairways he talked about during his pre-tournament press conference, giving back strokes at the third and eighth.
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