Fowler, Schauffele shoot 62 to set US Open record; Australians well back

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Before Thursday, only one round of 62 had ever been recorded in a major championship, and never at the US Open.

Just halfway through the first round of at the Los Angeles Country Club, two 62s were already on the board.

Rickie Fowler, left, playing alongside Australia’s Jason Day, carded 10 birdies in his opening round at the Los Angeles Country Club.Credit: Getty

Rickie Fowler rang up 10 birdies en route to the first 62 in US Open history, and Xander Schauffele finished up about 20 minutes later with a bogey-free 62 to match him.

Fowler and Schauffele went eight-under at the par-70 Los Angeles Country Club, which is hosting a major for the first time. They were five clear of the field, with world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau among a group at three under.

South African Branden Grace was previously the only player to card a 62 at a major, accomplished in the third round of the 2017 Open Championship.

Six players had shot a round of 63 in the US Open’s 123-year history: American trio Johnny Miller, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Weiskopf; Vijay Singh of Fiji and Justin Thomas and Tommy Fleetwood of England.

Xander Schauffele is congratulated by world No.2 Jon Rahm after his opening round.Credit: Getty

Both players are California natives in search of the first major titles of their careers.

Fowler made 10 of 13 fairways and 15 of 18 greens in regulation. Most importantly, he led the field with 4.73 strokes gained putting.

“I knew it was close. I wasn’t sure of the exact number,” Fowler said of the record on the TV broadcast. “I was really just trying to keep moving forward. Made a lot of good swings. Been a while since I’ve made some mid-range putts, so it was nice to make a lot of those.”

Australia’s morning starters struggled to keep up with the sizzling pace.

Lucas Herbert was the best of the Aussies out early, eight shots behind Fowler following an even-par 70.

Herbert mixed three birdies with three bogeys to complete his round in a tie for 22nd.

Despite the soft greens and unusually easy Open scoring conditions, Adam Scott could only manage a two-over 74, one better than fellow former world No.1 Jason Day.

Scott arrived on the back of three top-10 finishes from his past four events, but found it tough going.

The 2013 Masters champion slumped to five-over through his first 13 holes before rallying with three late birdies to at least give himself hope of making the halfway cut.

Adam Scott struggled early before giving himself a shot at making the cut.Credit: Getty

Day has missed the cut in his past two events since breaking a five-year winless drought at last month’s AT&T Byron Nelson Championship in Texas and is battling once again to earn a weekend tee time.

The two-time Open runner-up racked up five bogeys in his first seven holes before steadying on the back nine without making any great move.

Fowler teed off alongside Day on No. 10 in the morning wave and played his first nine in three under comprising five birdies and two bogeys. His birdie putt of nearly 16 feet at the 18th hole launched a string of four straight birdies.

At the par-five first, Fowler’s third shot out of a greenside bunker stopped five feet from the pin, and his second shot at the par-four second nestled to within about two feet of the cup. And at the par-four third, Fowler’s approach spun back and glanced off the ball of one of his playing partners, stopping four feet and change from the pin. The resulting birdies pushed him ahead of the pack by multiple shots.

US Open leaderboard

*Denotes round ongoing, USA unless noted

  • -8: Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele
  • -3: Kim Si-woo (KOR), Bryson DeChambeau, Paul Barjon (FRA), Scottie Scheffler.
  • -2: Ryan Fox (NZ), Wyndham Clark*, Dylan Wu, Jacob Solomon, Max Homa.

Fowler’s final birdies came at holes six and eight, the latter a par-five that saw him in trouble off the tree. His drive landed in a narrow gorge that winds throughout the property, but he blasted out into the fairway, avoiding an overhanging tree, and reached the green in three shots before sinking a 13 foot birdie.

He two-putted the par-three ninth hole to conclude his historic round.

Schauffele also started on the back nine and birdied three of his first five holes. He watched a 17-foot birdie putt on the first roll 360 degrees around the cup before dropping, and he stayed on Fowler’s tail with birdies at two, five and seven.

Shortly after Fowler signed for his 62, Schauffele made a left-to-right seven-footer at the eighth to tie him at 8 under. He had to save par from about four feet out at the ninth to secure his 62.

World No.9 Cameron Smith will spearhead Australia’s afternoon assault.

The British Open champion will hope to continue the momentum gained from last month’s PGA Championship, where he closed with a 65 to claim his first top-10 result at the tournament.

Cam Davis, who shared fourth at the PGA Championship for his best major championship finish yet, Min Woo Lee and amateur qualifier Kurt Vilips also tee off later.

Field Level Media, AAP

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