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2019 U.S. Open Live Coverage: Highlights from Thursday’s first round at Pebble Beach

By GOLF Editors
June 13, 2019
Brooks Koepka is going for his third straight U.S. Open title.
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The wait is over, and the 2019 U.S. Open is officially underway at Pebble Beach. You can follow the entire U.S. Open first round with our U.S. Open Live Coverage blog below, featuring live score updates, highlights from your favorite players, and video clips of the best shots.

Phil Mickelson will get his tournament started early on Thursday. The five-time major champion tees off at 11:13 a.m. ET, alongside Dustin Johnson and Graeme McDowell, who won the last U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in 2010. Mickelson is still in search of his first-ever title at the national championship.

Tiger Woods tees off during a U.S. Open practice round at Pebble Beach.
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Rory McIlroy is another player among the favorites with an early tee time. McIlroy is fresh off a dominant victory at the RBC Canadian Open. He begins his opening round at 10:51 a.m. ET with Jon Rahm and Marc Leishman.

Tiger Woods fans will have to wait a little longer to catch their favorite pro in action. The 2019 Masters champion is set for a late 5:09 p.m. ET starting time for Thursday. Defending champion Brooks Koepka tees off at 4:47 p.m. ET.

Our U.S. Open Live Coverage blog kicks off at 11 a.m. ET, just after McIlroy’s group tees off, and just before Mickelson’s threesome begins. We will continue tracking all the live action through Tiger’s round.

Follow the entire first round of the 2019 U.S. Open below.

U.S. Open Live Coverage Coverage: Thursday’s First Round (ET)

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That’s about all for the day. Will be interesting to say who in that bunch on the leaderboard can stay through tomorrow — and who can make a move to join them. Stay tuned to GOLF.com throughout the day and, of course, as the tournament progresses.

10:09: And Justin Rose is your solo leader. He cans the birdie putt on 18 to get to six under par, one shot ahead of the group behind him.

10:04: Tiger two-putts for a first-round 70. That’s four shots off the lead… for now…

10:00: Justin Rose will have about 15 feet to take the solo lead going into Friday. Tiger will have to hole one from about 40 feet for a 69.

9:57: Tiger finds the greenside bunker trying to go for it in two. He needs to get up and down for a round in the 60s.

9:47: Kuchar rolls in a lengthy birdie putt on No. 9 — his final hole of the day — to finish out with a 69. Maybe, just maybe, this could be his week at a major? Anyone?

9:44: Justin Rose becomes the fifth guy atop the leaderboard at five under. Nice birdie for him on 17.

9:42: Koepka missed a 10-footer and will head into Friday at two under, three shots off the leaders. Came out hot, but scuffled a bit down the stretch.

9:41: Francesco Molinari is going to tap in for a birdie and 68. A hole behind, Tiger curls a nice bunker shot to a few feet for par.

9:37: Tiger is in the bunker short on 17, Rose on the green, Spieth in the rough.

9:34: Brooks has to lay-up from the cart path on 18. Finds the fairway.

9:32: Justin Rose makes a birdie on 16 to move into a tie for second. Tiger two-putts for his par.

9:28: Brooks needed a deflection off a patron’s leg to save his tee shot from going out of bounds. He’s in trouble to the right.

9:24: Viktor Hovland made a birdie on 17 to move to one under. Took an aggressive line on 18 and crushed it out there. He’ll have a go into the green on the par-5 18th.

9:23: Brooks misses an eight-footer for par and he’ll drop to two under.

9:18: Spieth takes iron at 16 and splits the fairway.  Tiger, too. Little club twirl, even.

9:12: Just a fantastic lag from 60 feet for Tiger on 15. Make that eight straight pars for him.

9:10: Brooks with another par save, this one on 16. Quietly has been grinding since his blistering start.

9:03: Henrik Stenson now has four birdies in a row after making one at No. 8. He’s at three under for the day.

9:02: Spieth rolled in a much-needed birdie at 14. Circled the entire hole before dropping.

8:59: It was 30 feet, to be more precise. And he made it. Unbelievable. Even threw in a fist pump. Somehow, Tiger stays in red numbers heading over to 15.

8:56: It was a delicate (read: really difficult) pitch for Tiger, and he knocks it a solid 40 feet beyond the hole. That’s for his par on the par-5 14th.

8:54: Tiger blows it over the back of the green from the near bunker. Leaves plenty to clean up just to salvage par.

8:52: Wow. Koepka missed a three-footer for birdie on 15. He left himself plenty to clean up, but does so for his par. Still three under.

8:49: Birdie for Chez Reavie on No. 9. He cards a 68 and is just two shots off the lead.

8:43: It’s been a struggle today for Jordan Spieth, who could really use a birdie or two coming in to boost his confidence. He finds the fairway, alongside Tiger, on 14.

8:32: Tiger scrambles again. A nice pitch scares the edge of the cup and he’ll have just a couple feet to save par after a dreadful tee shot. He’ll be really happy with anything under par for the round, you’d imagine.

8:25:

8:23: Tiger loses his drive right of the bunkers on 13 and immediately drops his driver. Gonna have a tricky approach, to say the least.

8:21: Brooks finds thick stuff at the par-5 14th, and will most definitely be laying up.

8:17: Another two-putt for Tiger. A par at 12. Elsewhere, Lashley finished out for a 67, a shot off the lead.

8:11: Callum Tarren makes an eagle from the fairway bunker at 10. That’s now 14(!) eagles today, the most in a single U.S. Open round in the last 50 years.

8:08: Snedeker’s up-and-down round takes another turn, skulling it from the bunker all the way across the green and into the rough. That’ll be a scramble just to make bogey on No. 5.

8:05: Tiger almost holes out from the bunker 11. Hit the flag and could’ve gone in.

8:00: Another iron miss for Tiger. Meanwhile, Brooks drains a long birdie putt to get to four under.

7:49: Tiger opts for putter from a solid five feet off the green. Gives it a nice roll, leaving a few feet left to clean up for par.

7:45:  An odd round for Tiger continues, missing with an iron again on 10. He’s finding fairways and making putts. Weirdly, it’s the irons holding him back right now.

7:43: Brooks lags for an easy two-putt up par at 11. He’ll take that after his tee shot landed in the rough. Still at three under.

7:41: Nathan Lashley cans a 23-footer to move to four under. Remains quite crowded atop this leaderboard.

7:35: Tiger taps in for his par at nine after finding some trouble on the approach. He’ll stay one under par. At 10, he finds yet another fairway.

7:13: And we have a new co-leader in Aaron Wise! He’s now five-under for the day after another birdie.

7:12: After a disastrous eighth hole which saw him lash out at his caddie, Spieth settles for bogey and drops to one-over on the day. Rose bogeys the hole as well to drop to three-under.

7:11: Tiger misses a birdie opportunity at the eighth hole and settles for par. He remains one-under through eight.

7:07: Brandt Snedeker had a pretty interesting experience at the 18th hole today.

6:59: Reigning PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Aaron Wise is four-under through 12 holes and finds himself one off the lead.

6:55: Rose is on fire! Another birdie for the Englishman and he’s now four-under through seven holes.

6:52: Back-to-back birdie for Tiger after a fantastic birdie putt at the seventh hole. He’s now back to one-under on the day.

6:51: Bogey for Brooks! Koepka drops to three-under through eight holes after failing to settle for par. But Hovland double bogeys at the eighth hole to drop to two-under.

6:50: Spieth, Rose, and Tiger all put their tee shots at the par-3 seventh hole, with Rose having the best location of the three.

6:48: After putting his second shot into the rough, Koepka sends his chip shot past the cup and onto the fringe here at the eighth hole. He’ll have to save par here.

6:47: Birdie for Tiger at the sixth to move back to even par!

6:46: Rose eagles the sixth hole to move to three-under for the tournament and two shots off the lead.

6:45: Reality setting in for Hovland. After sending his second shot into the bunker behind the green, his chip shot goes into the rough.

6:41: Tiger with a solid chip shot at the sixth hole to set himself up with a great birdie opportunity to get back to even par.

6:35: After a disastrous fifth hole, Tiger gets back on track with a strong tee shot down the left side of the fairway at the sixth hole.

6:33: Rory Sabbatini with an ACE!! Two bounces and into the cup at the par-3 12th hole!

6:30: Koepka’s birdie putt runs past the hole and will have to settle for par at the seventh hole. He’ll remain one shot off the lead. Hovland pars the seventh as well.

6:28: At the iconic par-3 seventh hole, Koepka and Molinari put their tee shots on the green and in positions for birdie. Meanwhile, Hovland is on the fringe here.

6:26: Yikes! Tiger misses his bogey putt and double bogeys the fifth hole. He drops to one-over through five holes today.

6:25: Another hole, another birdie for Koepka and Hovland. Both men are at four-under through six holes.

6:24: Tiger sends his chip shot onto the green and runs it past the hole. He has about 10 feet to save bogey at the fifth hole.

6:22: Tiger pitches his second shot through the green here at the fifth hole and is going to have another chip shot coming.

6:20: Brooks barely misses his eagle attempt to tie for the lead at the sixth hole. He’s set up with an easy birdie opportunity and should move to four-under through six holes.

6:17: Tiger sends his tee shot WAY left at the fifth hole, and takes a bad bounce off the cart path. It stays in bounds, but it’s not a good setup here for Tiger.

6:09: Tiger and Rose both make birdie putts at the fourth hole to move to one-under for the day. Spieth settles for par to remain at one-under through four.

6:03: Tiger with a beautiful approach shot at the fourth hole and sets himself up about five feet away from the cup with an excellent birdie opportunity.

6:01: So much for Koepka settling for par at the fifth hole. He birdies it with a magnificent chip shot to move to three-under through five holes! The defending champion is here. Hovland nails his birdie putt to move to three-under through five as well.

5:59: Tiger, Spieth, and Rose all put their drives on the fairway at the fourth hole.

5:57: Koepka sends his tee shot into the rough at the par-3 fifth hole and will need a good chip shot to get onto the green and save par. Meanwhile, Molinari’s tee shot finds the fringe and Hovland puts his on the green with another chance for birdie.

5:55: Tiger saves par and remains even through three holes.

5:52: Tiger runs his birdie attempt past the hole and will now go for par at the third hole. Spieth and Rose miss their birdie putts as well.

5:50: Molinari moves to two-under after a birdie at the fourth hole. He joins his playing partners Koepka and Hovland at two-under, who both settled for par at the fourth.

5:47: Tiger’s approach shot lands on the left fringe, while Rose and Spieth place both of their approach shots on the green at the third hole.

5:45: Koepka, Molinari, and Hovland all put their approach shots on the fourth green and will have birdie opportunities.

5:42: Spieth sends his tee shot way off to the right at the dogleg left third hole, while Tiger and Rose both get their tee shots on the fairway.

5:37: Tiger saves par at the second hole to remain even through two holes. Rose recovers nicely and saves par as well, but Spieth birdies the second hole to move to one-under.

5:32: Back-to-back birdies for Hovland to move to two-under in his last tournament as an amateur. But Brooks racks up his second birdie of the day to move to two-under as well.

5:27: Tiger puts his tee shot at the second hole into an island of thick, high rough in the middle of a bunker off to the left. Interesting setup here for the three-time U.S. Open champ.

5:24: Koepka settles for par at the second hole, while Molinari and Hovland both earn birdies to move to one-under. Take a look at the amateur Hovland’s birdie here!

5:21: Tiger’s birdie putt comes up less than an inch short of the cup and settles for par at the first. Spieth and Rose also par the opening hole too.

5:18: Tiger and Spieth both find the green with their approach shots, while Rose is in the rough just to the front left of the green. But he puts his chip shot on the green and should be able to save par, while Tiger and Spieth will have chances at birdie.

5:10: The featured group of Tiger Woods, Justin Rose, and Jordan Spieth is officially off the tee and underway. Tiger is the only one of the group who puts his drive on the fairway.

5:01: Brooks Koepka opens up his first round with a birdie at the first hole. The man picks up right where he left off at last year’s U.S. Open. Molinari and Hovland both par the first hole.

4:53: Branden Grace had an unorthodox approach shot here…from the hospitality tent!

4:49: The featured grouping of Francesco Molinari, Viktor Hovland, and back-to-back U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka is officially off at Pebble Beach.

4:44: Tiger Woods is warming up on the driving range ahead of his first round!

4:40: Paul Casey opens up his first round with a birdie at the first hole to start the day at one-under. Casey finished as runner-up to Phil Mickelson at the Pro-Am this past February at Pebble Beach.

4:28: WOW! Louis Oosthuizen holes out from the bunker on 9 to finish with a 66 as well! That’s three tied at the top!

4:24: Another eagle alert! Xander Schauffele drains one on the 18th to match Rickie Fowler’s 66.

4:15: Louis Oosthuizen heads to 18 with a chance to match Rickie’s 66 with a birdie.

4:05: As the morning wave finishes up, just a reminder that featured afternoon groups include Kopeka, Molinari, Hovland, Simpson, Scott and Kuchar in less than 45 minutes, and Tiger, Justin Rose and Jordan Spieth at 5:09.

4:01: Rickie burns the edge for birdie on 18 to tap in for a first-round 66, which still holds the solo lead by one.

3:52: Rickie overcooks his approach on 18 and ends up in what looks like the greenside bunker on the left. He needs a birdie to match Tiger’s opening round in 2000.

3:45: Rory taps in for an opening 68 — by far his best U.S. Open start in the last handful of years.

3:41: A nice par save at 17 will leave Rickie with one more birdie opportunity on 18 to try to get to 6 under. That would tie his low opening round in a major.

3:34: Eagle alert! Sergio drains a shortie on No. 6 to get to 3 under par on the day — only two shots back!

3:25: Wow, Rickie just a fraction of an inch from three birdies in a row. He stays at five under with two holes to play. Meanwhile, Tyrrell Hatton and Louis Oosthuizen card back-to-back birdies to get to 4 under on the day.

3:15: A birdie on No. 6 brings Phil Mickelson back to even par on the day. There are still 28 players under par.

3:06: This leaderboard is so good right now — it’s crazy to think that Tiger, Jordan, Brooks, Francesco, Justin Rose and dozens of others haven’t even teed off yet!

3:05: Rickie is rollin’ the rock today! Another birdie on 15 gives him the outright lead.

2:55: A bogey for Piercy on 18 means he’ll sign for an opening 67 — tied for 1st with Rickie!

2:52: A birdie on No. 14 busts Rickie Fowler out of the gang at 3 under. He’s now in solo second at 4 under.

2:43: DJ’s bomb sets up a nice up-and-down opportunity for birdie, which he converts with no problem. He’s back to even.

2:34: DJ nearly drives the par-4 fourth. What a shot! No doubt he wants to avenge those bogeys.

2:30: Oh man. Some carnage to report. Phil just missed a par putt under one foot to bogey No. 3. He’s now 1 over. And DJ suffered back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 2 and 3 to drop to 1 over on the day as well.

2:19: Rory McIlroy narrowly misses a birdie at No. 4 to stay 3 under.

2:14: DJ drops a shot and slips back to even par after a bogey on No. 3. It should be noted that the conditions could not be more perfect this morning. Marine layer, basically zero wind. Will be interesting to see just how low these guys can go today.

2:07: Oooooh-weee! Rory just jarred a long one on No. 3 to join the pack at 3 under.

2:04: Just want to point out: There are currently 29 players under par!

2:01: A sweet birdie on 11 brings Rickie Fowler to 3 under and two back.

1:59: A nice par save for DeChambeau keeps him within two shots of the lead.

1:55: Great par save for Piercy at 15 to stay at 5 under. There are now six players at 3 under, including Tommy Fleetwood.

1:47: Let me be the first to welcome Sepp Straka to the party at the top of the leaderboard. He’s now 3 under — along with Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau — and two shots back. Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy birdied No. 2 to get to 2 under and three back.

1:42: Gary Woodland sabotaged himself with a poor tee shot at No. 9 but manages to salvage a bogey to stay within two shots of Piercy’s lead.

1:37: Scott Piercy drains an easy birdie on 14 to take the solo lead at 5 under.

1:33: DJ drains an easy short birdie putt on 18 to make the turn in 1 under. Leaders are still at 4 under.

1:31: Rickie Fowler burns the edge to drop a shot on No. 9. He’s now 2 under.

1:27: Kevin Kisner with the first putting nightmare of the week: 4 and-a-half feet for birdie on the par 5 18th, he lips it out and eventually…makes a double-bogey 7. Yikes.

1:24: Bryson Dechambeau makes a nice little up and down from behind 18, and he turns in two under.

1:20: Here comes…Gary Woodland? Gary Woodland! He’s now birdied four of his last five holes to join Piercy at 4 under.

1:17: Phil two-putts 17 for a par. Rory misses the fairway at 1 — his second straight missed fairway. Rory is currently chugging along at 1 under.

1:09: Phil bogeys 16 after hitting his approach into the front bunker. Up ahead, Rahm burns the edge for eagle on 18. Looks like he’ll make a birdie to get back to -3.

1:07: Piercy reclaimed the solo lead with a birdie on 12. One back: Rickie, Woodland and Oosthuizen. Lots of early movement, of course, but Piercy has been the one constant at the top of the board so far.

1:01: And DJ has birdie two of his last three holes. He’s 1 under. Lots of red numbers popping up on the boards right now.

12:51: Annnnd Fowler walks in a birdie on the short par-3 7th to join the crew at 3 under. On 17, Rahm fails to get up and down down from the deep stuff — his putt his the rim and stayed out — and he drops to 2 under on the day.

12:49: Back at 10, Thorbjorn Olesen knocks in a birdie and joins Rahm and Piercy at 3 under.

12:46: Phil cooly two-putts for par on 15. Nothing wrong with that. He remains one under.

12:43: Up ahead on 16, we have a Hideki sighting! Matsuyama pitches in for birdie, and just like that he’s 2 under.

12:39: Phil from the fairway on 15….and he’s safely aboard. About 25 feet for another birdie.

12:32: It goes in the books as a birdie on 14 for Phil. Nice start overall. He’s one back, two behind the early leaders, Piercy and Rahm.

12:24: Mickelson knocks his second to 12 feet, and that’s an eagle opportunity.

12:20: Phil parred 13 — that’s four straight to open — and he piped his drive on the par-5 14th. Let’s see if he can make something happen here.

12:16: Rory’s on the board.

12:06: On 13, Mickelson misses another fairway (left again) but knocks it inside 10 feet and he’s got another birdie opportunity. Meanwhile, Rahm parred 13 just ahead of Phil and remains 3 under, tied with Piercy for the lead.

11:58: No good! Phil pars 12. Meanwhile, Piercy doubles 8 to drop back to 3 under, now tied with Rahm. Things are happening out there.

11:50: On 12, Phil knocks his tee shot to 8 feet. Birdie putt coming up!

11:49:

11:43: Back on 11, Mickelson drove into the left rough, but was able to knock it onto the green. He two-putted from 26 feet for a second straight par.

11:36: Rahm continues to hang with Piercy — he’s opened birdie-birdie-birdie on holes 10-12. Incredible start.

11:34: Folks, Scott Piercy is going bananas. He’s now birdied five of his first six hole and leads by three. What a start!

11:28: Phil blasts out to 14 feet and DRAINS it. Nice save. He’s on to 11.

11:24: Phil finds the fairway on 10 (his opening hole) but dumps his approach into a bunker left of the green. He’ll have to get that up and down to save par.

11:19: Meanwhile, Piercy birdies 5 to get to 3 under. He leads by two — he’s trying to turn out the lights early! — but let’s see what happens over the next, oh, 67 holes.

11:18: According to the TV broadcast, 17 or the last 20 U.S. Open champs have been within four shots of the lead after round one. You don’t want to get too far behind, too fast, out here.

11:17: Playing alongside Rory, Jon Rahm opens with a birdie on the 10th, a fantastic score on that hole.

11:14: On the tough par-4 10th, Rory opens his open with a bogey. Missed the green left with his approach and failed to get up and down. It’ll play a half-shot over par, so he only loses a half-shot on the field. Phil teeing off there now.

11:08: Current weather this morning at Pebble: cloudy, 57 degrees, 5 mph winds.

11:05: Your very, very verrrry early leader: Scott Piercy! Just as everyone predicted, right? He’s birdie Nos. 2 and 4 and he’s 2 under.

10:56: TV camera shows Phil, in a black shirt and gray pants, stroking putts on the practice green. They’re also rehashing Phil swatting the moving ball on the green last year at Shinnecock. Did it wreck his Open karma, or will he be a factor this week? He’s off at 11:13.

10:14 a.m.: Here are the hole locations for Round 1 at Pebble:

10:12 a.m.: The first round of the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach is about to get underway:

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