Oakmont wreaked havoc in the first round of the US Open: Nicolás Echavarría and Scottie Scheffler among the victims

Chasing his first Grand Slam title since 2023, Spanish golfer Jon Rahm got off to a great start at the U.S. Open on Thursday , a day of hard work for favorites like Scottie Scheffler and one in which Colombian Nicolás Echavarría had a round to forget.

Rahm finished the first round on the formidable Oakmont course in Pennsylvania with a one-under-par 69, which placed him in joint sixth place. The first round was taken by American JJ Spaun, world number 25, who amazed with a 66 (-4).

With a four-birdie, bogey-free round, Spaun matched the best first-round result in any of the ten U.S. Opens played at Oakmont.

"I'm very pleased with how I started. I hit a lot of good shots and tried to take advantage of every birdie opportunity, which isn't a lot of here," said the Californian, a PGA title winner who has yet to make a top-20 finish at a major.

South African Thriston Lawrence, another unexpected presence at the heights of a Grand Slam, finished just one stroke behind, while South Koreans Im Sung-jae and Kim Si-woo, as well as American Brooks Koepka, double champion of the tournament in 2017 and 2018, finished two strokes behind.

Jon Rahm, the 2021 winner, also wowed the crowd with a dazzling start to the round, scoring a birdie and an eagle on the third and fourth holes.

The Spaniard later slowed down after making two bogeys on the sixth and eleventh holes, but he remained in the lead in the tournament, the third of the four Grand Slams on the calendar.

"I'm extremely happy. I played incredible golf to finish 1 under par, and that's something we don't often say, right?" the 2023 Masters champion said.

"It was really good golf overall, especially because of how well I played off the tee. I'd say virtually every shot off the tee was in the fairway or close to it, and that made the day a lot easier," explained the only Spanish champion of this tournament, now in its 125th year.

Feared for its ultra-fast greens, tricky bunkers, and thick, high rough, Oakmont's course only allowed a dozen players to go under par and wreaked havoc on most of the top contenders.

American Scottie Scheffler had a tough road to a second consecutive major title after his victory at the PGA Championship in May.

The world number one completed an unusually bumpy round in 73 strokes (+3), with three birdies and six bogeys, which left him in 49th place.

"I made some silly mistakes, but at the same time I made some key putts. Overall, I just need to be a little more accurate," said Scheffler, who has won three of his last four tournaments.

His compatriot Bryson DeChambeau, the defending champion, recorded the same score in another unfortunate start. "I'm very disappointed with how I played," admitted DeChambeau, a major figure on the Saudi LIV Golf Tour alongside Rahm.

Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy, winner of the Masters in April, got off to an even worse start with a 74 (+4) in 62nd place.

Among the Latin American representation, the Argentine Emiliano Grillo and the Mexican Carlos Ortiz finished with 71 strokes (+1) sharing twentieth position.

Chilean Joaquín Niemann, who arrived in top form after winning his fourth tournament of the year at LIV Golf, will have to work hard to make the cut on Friday, finishing in 70th place with a 75 stroke (+5).

For his part, Nicolás Echavarría had a day to forget: a 78, eight over par, and currently five strokes away from the cutoff. It's worth remembering that the top 60, plus ties, will play this weekend.