The first round of the 2011 U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club is in the books, and it was a banner day for Rory McIlroy, who fired a six-under 65 to put himself atop the U.S. Open leaderboard after Round 1. McIlroy had three straight birdies to get himself going and has a three-shot lead on the rest of the field.
There is a familiar contender lurking, though. Charl Schwartzel, who ended up as the 2011 Masters champion after McIlroy's final-day meltdown, finished strong with four birdies in his final nine holes to eventually finish at three-under. Schwartzel is tied for second place with Y.E. Yang, who set the early pace by firing a three-under in the morning.
Six players are right behind those two at two-under par, including Sergio Garcia, an accomplished pro who barely even qualified for the tournament. Twelve others, including defending champion Graeme McDowell are tied at one-under. Overall, 21 players shot under par on Day 1, compared to just 13 last year. There are still a few more stragglers on the course that could add to that number.
Here is a complete leaderboard of all the players under par:
- Rory McIlroy: -6
- Y.E. Yang: -3
- Charl Schwartzel: -3
- Ryan Palmer: -2
- Sergio Garcia: -2
- Scott Hend: -2
- Alexandre Rocha: -2
- Kyung-tae Kim: -2
- Louis Oosthuizen: -2
- Robert Rock: -1
- Bubba Dickerson: -1
- Davis Love III: -1
- Chez Reavie: -1
- Graeme McDowell: -1
- Henrik Stenson: -1
- Stewart Cink: -1
- Robert Garrigus: -1
- Brandt Snedeker: -1
- John Senden: -1
- Johan Edfors: -1
- Alvaro Quiros: -1