Oosthuizen and Henley share first round lead at US Open

South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen matched US clubhouse pace-setter Russell Henley for the overall lead when darkness halted Thursday’s first round of the US Open, where Phil Mickelson struggled in his bid to complete a career Grand Slam.

Oosthuizen, the 2010 British Open champion, made three consecutive birdies to close his first nine after a 10th-tee start, then added an 11-foot birdie putt at the fifth to reach 4-under.

That’s where he stood when he stopped on the 17th green, level with Henley’s four-under par 67, when sunset fell with 36 players from the field of 156 needing to finish the opening round Friday after a 90-minute morning fog delay.

“I played nicely, putted nicely and hopefully just keep the momentum going,” Oosthuizen said.

World number 18 Oosthuizen, whose five major runner-up finishes since his win 11 years ago include last month’s PGA Championship, sank birdie putts from just inside 20 feet at 12, another from 19 feet at the par-3 16th, a 25-footer at 17 and a tap-in at 18.

World number 63 Henley, an American who hasn’t won a PGA title since the 2017 Houston Open and lacks a top-10 major finish, made three birdies and a bogey on both the front and back nines to set the early pace at Torrey Pines.

“Over the last year, I’ve played the best Golf I’ve played consistently in my career. I feel like I have more of a complete game,” Henley said.

“But I haven’t finished top 10 in majors or anything. Haven’t really been in the majors. I want to play better in the majors.”

Italy’s Francesco Molinari, the 2018 British Open champion, and Spain’s Rafa Cabrera Bello, who holed out from just inside 60 feet to eagle the par-5 18th, shared second on 68.

“It’s nice to get off to a good start, but there’s a long way to go,” Molinari said. “You need to grind and fight for 18 holes.”

“A little bit of luck holing a chip-out on 18,” Cabrera Bello said. “I’m just very pleased with the score.”

Among those who finished in gathering gloom was Spain’s third-ranked Jon Rahm, who shot 69 after spending much of last week in Covid-19 quarantine.

“Even 20 minutes difference on sleep... you wish you had a couple extra minutes and by finishing today we get that, so it’s a big difference,” Rahm said. “Hopefully I can keep this good game going.

Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama of Japan also finished late. He began the back nine with two birdies, the latter from 50 feet, to join Rahm in a pack on 69.

Four-time major winner Brooks Koepka, coming off right knee surgery in March, and US compatriots Hayden Buckley and Xander Schauffele were also in the clubhouse on 69.

A day after his 51st birthday, hometown hero Mickelson stumbled to a 75 with three bogeys in his first six holes. He recovered with a 10-foot birdie putt at the 17th but bogeys at six and seven saw him into the clubhouse eight off the pace.

“Fought hard, made a lot of short putts to kind of keep myself in it and then I ended up bogeying six and seven,” Mickelson said.

Four-way tie AT Meijer Classic: Japan’s Nasa Hataoka, who is seeking her fourth win on the LPGA Tour, fired a 65 in the opening round of the Meijer LPGA Classic to finish in a four-way tie for the lead on Thursday.

The 2021 US Women’s Open runner-up Hataoka is level with Lauren Stephenson, Leona Maguire of Ireland and England’s Charley Hull at seven under on the Blythefield Country Club course.

Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand and Taiwanese star Lee Min were one stroke behind at six under. Eleven more players were tied at five under.

Hataoka closed her round with a birdie, the seventh on the day. She had four birdies in five holes on the front nine, starting on the par-five fourth.

The 22-year old lost to Yuka Saso on the third playoff hole at the Women’s Open in May after both women finished 72 holes at four-under 280.

Hataoka hasn’t won since the 2019 Kia Classic.

Agence France-Presse