The First Look: The Hero World Challenge

MAMARONECK, N.Y. — This was the Winged Foot everyone has heard about. This is the U.S. Open everyone expected. Patrick Reed answered the first big test Friday when the wind arrived out of the north, bringing a little chill and a lot of trouble. He never got flustered by bogeys and made enough birdie putts and key saves for an even-par 70. It felt just as rewarding as the 66 he shot in the opening round, and it gave him a one-shot lead over Bryson DeChambeau, who powered and putted his way to a 68. The opening round featured soft greens, a few accessible pins and 21 rounds under par. Friday was the epitome of a major long known as the toughest test in golf. Three players broke par. Nine others shot even par. Everyone else was hanging on for dear life. As the final groups tried to beat darkness in this September U.S. Open, only six players remained in red numbers. “It’s almost like they set it up to ease our way into it, and then showed us what it’s supposed to really be like,” Reed said. Television showed his five birdies. What took him to the 36-hole lead at 4-under 136 was a collection of pars from bunkers and from thick grass just over the greens. He managed them all with grit, a common trait among U.S. Open champions. DeChambeau showed plenty of resiliency, too, bouncing back with birdies after all five of his bogeys and finishing the best round of the day with a pitching wedge on the downwind, 557-yard, par-5 ninth to 6 feet for eagle. Rafa Cabrera-Bello of Spain and Harris English each had a 70 and were at 2-under 138. They were joined by Justin Thomas, who opened with a 65 — the lowest ever at Winged Foot for a U.S. Open — and lost all those shots to par after 10 holes. Thomas then delivered a 5-wood from 228 yards into the wind on the par-3 third hole and made a slick, 15-foot, double-breaking birdie putt to steady himself. He scratched out a 73 and is right in it. Jason Kokrak (71) was the only other player under par at 1-under 139. “This isn’t exactly a place where you go out and try to shoot 6 or 7 under to catch up,” Thomas said. “I’m not going to worry about what everyone else is doing because you could shoot 80 just as easily as you could shoot 68. I just need to stay focused, and most importantly, go home and get some rest. Because I’m pretty tired.” There’s still 36 holes to go, and no indication that Winged Foot is going to get any easier. “The rough is still really thick. I don’t think they’re planning on cutting it,” Matthew Wolff said after salvaging a 74 that left him four shots behind. “The greens are only going to get firmer, and the scores are only going to get higher.” Tiger Woods is among those who won’t be around to experience it. He had a pair of double bogeys at the end of the back nine, and two birdies over his last three holes gave him a 77. He missed the cut by four shots, the eighth time in his last 15 majors he won’t be around for the weekend. “It feels like the way the golf course is changing, is turning, that anybody who makes the cut has the opportunity to win this championship,” Woods said. “I didn’t get myself that opportunity.” Neither did Phil Mickelson, who had his highest 36-hole score in 29 appearances in the one major he hasn’t won. Ditto for Jordan Spieth, whose 81 was his highest score in a major. PGA Championship winner Collin Morikawa missed an 8-foot birdie putt on the final hole that cost him a chance to keep playing. Reed turned in a workman-like performance, making birdies when he had the chance, saving par when needed. This is the kind of golf he loves. It’s a grind. And it’s about feel. He was most pleased with his birdie on No. 1 after he made the turn, going with a chip 8-iron from 147 yards into the wind and riding the slope at the back of the green to tap-in range. “I love when it’s hard, when you have to be creative on all different golf shots,” he said. There were plenty of great rounds on such a demanding course, many of which fell apart at the end. Louis Oosthuizen was 3 under in the morning when he finished bogey-bogey-double bogey for a 74. Xander Schauffele was 3 under until he bogeyed three of his last five holes. “The wind can make a par-3 course difficult, so put that on a U.S. Open setup, it’s going to be even more so,” Schauffele said. “It’ll be a fun afternoon to watch on TV.” Rory McIlroy’s problems started early. He was 5 over through seven holes, including a birdie at the start, and shot 76 to fall seven shots behind. Dustin Johnson was bogey-free through 16 holes until a pair of bad tee shots led to bogey. He had a 76 and was in the group at 3-over 143. All of them still feel as though the U.S. Open is in sight. “I’m confident now, after seeing what was out there this afternoon, over par will win this tournament,” Adam Scott said a 74 left him nine shots back. “The greens finally dried out. If there’s any breeze, over par is winning.” It usually does at Winged Foot.

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NAPA, Calif. — Bryson DeChambeau hasn’t had much chance to get familiar with his wedge after changing to a graphite shaft this week. The Northern California native certainly looked comfortable enough Friday as he attacked pin after pin to surge up the leaderboard at the Safeway Open. DeChambeau shot a bogey-free 8-under 64 on Friday to take a two-shot lead in the Safeway Open. DeChambeau had a 12-under 132 total at Silverado Country Club. The 26-year-old matched two others for the best round of the day and was in line to extend his lead, but left a 20-foot eagle putt short on No. 18. “It’s always fun to come out and play to the potential you know you can,” DeChambeau said. “The greens got a little bumpy this afternoon but they’re still rolling nice enough to make some putts. I was able to control my line, control my speed and have a couple of them drop in.” DeChambeau missed the cut at the season-opening event at A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier, didn’t play in last week’s Sanderson Farms Championship and got off to a slow start this week with an opening-round 68 that left him four shots back. After beginning the second round with four consecutive pars, DeChambeau birdied No. 5, sank a 35-footer for birdie on No. 6, then had a tap in for another birdie on No. 8. He opened the back nine with three straight birdies, made another birdie on No. 14 then closed with a final birdie on 18. “I knew if I could go work on my swing like I did yesterday and come out and feel comfortable like I did today, I’d come out and shoot a low number,” DeChambeau said. Nick Watney was second after a 65. Watney needed just 22 putts to complete his round and stay within range of DeChambeau. “(The greens) are getting a little bit crispy right now, but they rolled pretty pure for me,” Watney said. Justin Thomas made nine birdies and matched DeChambeau with a 64 that left him tied with Nick Taylor (66), Dylan Frittelli (65), Adam Long (68) and Cameron Champ (68) at 9 under. First-round leaders Adam Scott and Andrew Landry tumbled down the leaderboard. Scott struggled off the tee most of the afternoon and shot a 73 to fall into tie for 14th at 6 under. Landry shot 74 and drop to 5 under. A few big names won’t be playing over the weekend. Phil Mickelson shot 69 but was doomed by an opening 75 that included a quadruple bogey. Defending champion Kevin Tway bogeyed the final hole for a 72 to miss the cut by a stroke. “The way I see it, there were eight par 5s and I’ve got to play those 4 to 6 under par to have a chance to win,” Mickelson said. “I played them 4 over. So there’s eight to 10 shots right there on simply the par 5s. It tells me that some areas are OK, but that’s the area that I’ve got to improve on.” Tony Romo, the former NFL quarterback and current CBS analyst, also missed the cut, following an opening 70 with a 78. If he had made the cut, he planned to skip Sunday’s NFL broadcast in Chicago between the Bears and Minnesota Vikings.

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