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SOUTHAMPTON, New York — The first day of the U.S. Open was defined by wind, and then by Wyndham Clark.
Clark, the 2023 U.S. Open champion on a hot streak the last month, has a four-shot lead at 6 under through 16 holes of his first round, which was halted due to darkness at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.
Clark could post one of the lowest U.S. Open rounds in Shinnecock history — Tommy Fleetwood's record 7-under 63 from 2018 is in range. The last man to lead a U.S. Open by four or more shots after the first round was Tommy Armour in 1933.
In the last month, Clark won the CJ Cup Byron Nelson with a final round 60, then was third at Memorial and tied for 11th at the RBC Canadian Open last week. Before that, he last posted a top-10 in a full-field event at last July's Open Championship.
A two-hour fog delay from 7:05-9:05 a.m. pushed play back. Forecasted winds above 20 miles per hour, with higher gusts, had more of an impact on the morning wave that included Rory McIlroy (1 under) and Scottie Scheffler (2 over).
The winds were such a concern that the greens were set up to be their slowest at a U.S. Open since 1995 (when Shinnecock also hosted).
Jon Rahm, the 2021 U.S. Open champion, is in a group of seven men tied for second at 2 under (six from the afternoon wave). He's through 13 holes and the only player in the field of 156 with a chance to end a streak of six consecutive U.S. Open rounds at Shinnecock without any bogey-free cards.
Fellow U.S. Open champions Dustin Johnson (2016), Gary Woodland (2019) and Matt Fitzpatrick (2022) are also at 2 under.
U.S. Open coverage continues Friday at 6:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN and Peacock, with later coverage starting at 1:30 p.m. on NBC and Peacock.
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Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are among the challengers to J.J. Spaun’s U.S. Open title.
McIlroy had the solo lead for about an hour in the early afternoon before bogeys on his last two holes. He tied for the second-lowest round of the morning wave.
“It was obviously a really tricky day and just a day to stay patient and hang in there,” he said. “I hit enough good shots to give myself some chances. I think anything in red figures today was a good effort.”
McIlroy is bidding to go a record 15 years between U.S. Open wins. He went wire-to-wire in 2011 at Congressional at age 22, his first of six majors.
McIlroy, who achieved the career Grand Slam in 2025, wants to win a U.S. Open at one of the traditional venues (Shinnecock is hosting for a sixth time) and can also tie the record for most majors won by a European man (England's Harry Vardon won seven more than 100 years ago).
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The world No. 1 Scheffler's first try to complete the career Grand Slam got off to what he called a "challenging start."
He shot a 2-over 72 with four birdies, four bogeys and a double bogey. Scheffler hit just half the greens en route to his 10th consecutive U.S. Open round not breaking par.
“Overall, yeah, it was a really challenging day,” he said. “If you told me when I was staring at my par putt on nine (when I was 3 over) that I would post 2 over today, I would definitely have taken it at the time. Overall it was a good battle. Get some rest, and we’ll see how the course changes over the next day.”
Scheffler won the Masters in 2022 and 2024, then the PGA Championship and the Open Championship in 2025 to set up his first bid to complete the Slam at Shinnecock this week.
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Clark, the 2023 U.S. Open champion on a hot streak the last month, has a four-shot lead at 6 under through 16 holes of his first round, which was halted due to darkness at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.
Clark could post one of the lowest U.S. Open rounds in Shinnecock history — Tommy Fleetwood's record 7-under 63 from 2018 is in range. The last man to lead a U.S. Open by four or more shots after the first round was Tommy Armour in 1933.
In the last month, Clark won the CJ Cup Byron Nelson with a final round 60, then was third at Memorial and tied for 11th at the RBC Canadian Open last week. Before that, he last posted a top-10 in a full-field event at last July's Open Championship.
A two-hour fog delay from 7:05-9:05 a.m. pushed play back. Forecasted winds above 20 miles per hour, with higher gusts, had more of an impact on the morning wave that included Rory McIlroy (1 under) and Scottie Scheffler (2 over).
The winds were such a concern that the greens were set up to be their slowest at a U.S. Open since 1995 (when Shinnecock also hosted).
Jon Rahm, the 2021 U.S. Open champion, is in a group of seven men tied for second at 2 under (six from the afternoon wave). He's through 13 holes and the only player in the field of 156 with a chance to end a streak of six consecutive U.S. Open rounds at Shinnecock without any bogey-free cards.
Fellow U.S. Open champions Dustin Johnson (2016), Gary Woodland (2019) and Matt Fitzpatrick (2022) are also at 2 under.
U.S. Open coverage continues Friday at 6:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN and Peacock, with later coverage starting at 1:30 p.m. on NBC and Peacock.
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How to watch 2026 U.S. Open: Full schedule, TV/streaming info, golfers to watch, coverage guide
Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are among the challengers to J.J. Spaun’s U.S. Open title.
Rory McIlroy in early U.S. Open contention
McIlroy had the solo lead for about an hour in the early afternoon before bogeys on his last two holes. He tied for the second-lowest round of the morning wave.
“It was obviously a really tricky day and just a day to stay patient and hang in there,” he said. “I hit enough good shots to give myself some chances. I think anything in red figures today was a good effort.”
McIlroy is bidding to go a record 15 years between U.S. Open wins. He went wire-to-wire in 2011 at Congressional at age 22, his first of six majors.
McIlroy, who achieved the career Grand Slam in 2025, wants to win a U.S. Open at one of the traditional venues (Shinnecock is hosting for a sixth time) and can also tie the record for most majors won by a European man (England's Harry Vardon won seven more than 100 years ago).
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Rory McIlroy: PGA Tour’s 2-track schedule will be ‘glorified Korn Ferry’ events
Rory McIlroy bids for his first U.S. Open victory since his maiden major in 2011.
Scottie Scheffler has ‘challenging’ round
The world No. 1 Scheffler's first try to complete the career Grand Slam got off to what he called a "challenging start."
He shot a 2-over 72 with four birdies, four bogeys and a double bogey. Scheffler hit just half the greens en route to his 10th consecutive U.S. Open round not breaking par.
“Overall, yeah, it was a really challenging day,” he said. “If you told me when I was staring at my par putt on nine (when I was 3 over) that I would post 2 over today, I would definitely have taken it at the time. Overall it was a good battle. Get some rest, and we’ll see how the course changes over the next day.”
Scheffler won the Masters in 2022 and 2024, then the PGA Championship and the Open Championship in 2025 to set up his first bid to complete the Slam at Shinnecock this week.
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