OAKMONT, Pa. — Generally it helps not realizing what might go fallacious.
Having by no means performed at Oakmont Nation Membership in a aggressive spherical earlier than, J.J. Spaun proceeded Thursday to chart his manner round one of many hardest U.S Open assessments in simply 66 strokes.
“I form of got here out right here with no prior historical past at Oakmont, not likely realizing what to anticipate, even U.S. Open-wise. That is solely my second one,” Spaun stated. “I do not know if that freed me up in any side, however I simply tried to form of take what the course gave me.”
Spaun’s spherical of 4-under par featured no bogeys, making the primary time that any participant has carded a bogey-free spherical at Oakmont since Dustin Johnson’s first spherical in 2016. Johnson, in fact, went on to win his first main championship and completed the event at 5-under.
Over his 18 holes in Thursday’s opening spherical, Spaun hit eight of 14 fairways and 12 of 18 greens in regulation. However the place most of his scoring got here on his first 9 (he teed off on the tenth gap) with 4 birdies in his first eight holes for a file rating of 31, what he did on his second 9 was maybe extra spectacular, as he scrambled for par and by no means had a three-putt on Oakmont’s treacherous greens.
“It is difficult in each type of side or variable in golf,” Spaun stated of Oakmont. “You are clearly going to should grind once you’re out of place, and I did that basically properly at present.”
Spaun’s putter was incandescent in the course of the first spherical. The 34-year-old made 90 ft of putts and gained almost 4 strokes on the sphere together with his putter alone.
“I feel at present was one among my greatest placing days I’ve had perhaps all yr, particularly inside just like the makeable vary putts, inside 12 ft or so,” Spaun stated. “I like changing these putts, as a result of that is large for momentum and holding a spherical going, and that is form of what occurs right here at U.S. Opens.”
The final time Spaun, who’s ranked twenty fifth on the earth, was within the highlight was three months in the past on the Gamers Championship, the place he went toe-to-toe with Rory McIlroy in a three-hole Monday playoff however couldn’t take down the five-time main winner.
With 5 top-15 finishes this season, Spaun has been enjoying properly total, however he’s coming off a missed minimize on the Memorial. It is secure to say nobody anticipated him to sew collectively a spherical just like the one he did Thursday.
“I used to be truly fairly nervous. However I truly tried to harness that, the nerves, the nervousness, as a result of it form of heightens my focus, makes me swing higher,” Spaun stated. “I like feeling uncomfortable. I ended up feeling fairly comfy in the direction of the top of the day, however there is a lengthy solution to go.”
Even being in rivalry at a Gamers is nothing like what Spaun will expertise now that he is put himself in prime place at a significant championship on a golf course that may solely get tougher and the stress will solely develop.
Each he and his rivals comprehend it.
“It is Thursday,” Xander Schauffele, who birdied the final two holes to shoot 2-over, stated. “I simply advised J.J., ‘Unimaginable spherical, good enjoying. Good luck the remainder of the way in which.'”
