J.J. Spaun watches his tee shot on the seventh hole during the first round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Thursday, June 12, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

OAKMONT, Pa. (AP) — J.J. Spaun played a surprisingly steady hand Thursday among a wild mix of rare shots and some shockers at Oakmont, playing bogey-free on America’s toughest course for a 4-under 66 and a one-shot lead in the U.S. Open.

Scottie Scheffler made more bogeys in one round (5) than he usually makes in a tournament and had his highest start (73) at a U.S. Open.

Spaun went out in the morning with hardly a fuss and nary a bogey. He matched the low opening round in U.S. Opens at Oakmont — Andrew Landry also shot 66 the last time here in 2016 — and it was no mystery.

Good putting never fails at any U.S. Open, and Spaun holed five par putts ranging from 7 feet to 16 feet to go along with four birdies.

“I didn’t really feel like I’m going to show a bogey-free round 4 under. I didn’t really know what to expect especially since I’ve never played here,” said Spaun, playing in only his second U.S. Open. “But yeah, maybe sometimes not having expectations is the best thing, so I’ll take it.”

Oakmont lived up to its reputation with a scoring average of about 74.6 despite a course still relatively soft from rain and moderate wind that didn’t stick around for long.

Thriston Lawrence of South Africa, who contended at Royal Troon last summer, had six birdies in a round of 67.

And perhaps Brooks Koepka can count as a surprise because the five-time major champion has not contended in a major since winning the PGA Championship in 2023, and he missed the cut in the Masters and PGA Championship this year.

He looked like the Koepka of old, muscling way around Oakmont, limiting mistakes and closing with two birdies for a 68 that left him in a group with the South Korea duo of Si Woo Kim and Sungjae Im.

“It’s nice to put a good round together. It’s been a while,” Koepka said. “It’s been so far off … but now it’s starting to click.”

Another shot back at 69 was a group that included two-time major champion Jon Rahm, who went 11 holes before making a birdie, and followed that with an eagle.

Reed fires

a double-eagle

OAKMONT, Pa. (AP) — Patrick Reed made only the fourth double-eagle since the U.S. Open started keeping records some four decades ago, dunking in his second shot from 286 yards Thursday on the par-5 fourth hole at Oakmont.

The so-called albatross is considered the rarest shot in golf, with only a few hundred being made a year across the world, compared to more than 30,000 holes-in-one.

Reed looked stunned after he hit a fairway wood onto the green, watched it bounce three times and then roll toward the hole. Unsure of where the ball went, he raised his palm to the sky, then pointed downward, asking if it went in.

The applause up at the green gave him the answer.

The 2018 Masters champion joins T.C. Chen (1985 at Oakland Hills), Shaun Micheel (2010 at Pebble Beach) and Nick Watney (2012 at Olympic) as the only players to make an albatross at the U.S. Open since the event started keeping records in 1983.