Russell Henley ends his first round atop the U.S. Open leaderboard (updated)
By Michael A. Lough
The Sports Report
centralgasports@gmail.com
If Russell Henley muttered something unprintable under his breath after the first hole Thursday of the U.S. Open in San Diego, it’d be understandable.
He bogeyed the first hole.
Henley’s had a lot of bogeys lately.
But he more thane fixed things, and countered two bogeys with six birdies to finish the first round with a 4-under 67, good enough for the lead when he was done.
And Henley went to bed in first place – among those who had finished - in the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, by far his best spot in any round of a major.
Henley finished around 5:10 p.m. in sole possession of first, ahead of Rafa Cabrera Bello, who was about seven holes behind. Francesco Molinari ended shortly after Henley, one shot behind in second.
Brooks Koepka finished around the same time as Henley, with a 69. Bello’s 68 put him in a tie for third with Molinari.
Fog delayed the start of the first round by about 90 minutes, so the action was stopped around 11 p.m.
Louis Oosthuizen was also four under, through 16 holes. He started on No. 10, and had four birdies and a bogey in his first nine.
Only five golfers who still haven’t completed the first round are under par.
Defending champ Bryson DeChambeau didn’t tee off until around 5:45 p.m., one of dozens to tee off late, Eastern time, in the afternoon. He struggled early, with three bogeys in his first seven holes, followed by three straight bogeys on the back nine.
He steadied a little, and is two over and tied for 61st, with Matt Kuchar, Jason Kokrak, Stewart Cink, among others.
Three dozen golfers still have to finish the first round.
Henley played with Mackenzie Hughes and former Georgia teammate Harris English. English has a 1-over 72 (tied for 41st), Hughes a 2-over 73 (tied for 61st). They’ll tee off at 4:03 p.m. Friday and start on No. 10.
Henley is 26 shots over par in his last four tournaments, missing two cuts. That slump followed a nice run to start the season, with five straight top-30 finishes. Then May came, and he struggled.
His last U.S. Open was in 2018, when he started with a 69 and went downhill after that, though his 12-over 292 was good for a tie for 25th.
He last played at Torrey Pines in 2014.
“I feel like the last year I’ve been playing golf that I feel like I’m a top-50 player in the world,” Henley said in a USA Today story. “I’ve had a ton of top 10s. I’ve been in contention. I’ve been really consistent.
“The last couple tournaments I’ve played haven’t been quite as good, but the last year has been really consistent and really good. I feel like I’m just kind of still playing well.”