Playing his 92nd straight major, Adam Scott birdies final hole to lead Australian charge at US Open

Adam Scott only just got into the US Open to continue his unbelievable streak of major appearances and thrust himself into contention on day one.

Adam Scott says he felt rejuvenated after a last-minute call-up into a 92nd straight major, flying the Australian flag at the US Open where only two players in the 156-man field went bogey-free in the opening round at Pinehurst No.2.

The veteran Aussie was among just 15 players under par before making a double-bogey on his second-last hole after a chip from near the sandy waste area off the green rolled back to his feet.

Having only just made it in the field to continue the second-longest major appearance streak in golf history, which began in 2001, Scott made a 4m birdie putt on his final hole to finish even par as the leading Australian, one shot ahead of both Cameron Smith and Jason Day who carded opening rounds of one-over 71.

Scott conceded his late entry, having sat on the rankings bubble for weeks and losing a qualifying playoff to fellow Aussie Cam Davis before being among the last players included in the field to was “a little too close for comfort”.

“For a few weeks I was always on the wrong side of the process, and then even the week -- the qualifying being a week before the last cutoff, I wasn’t certain, and then of course I wasn’t certain after the qualifying being an alternate,” he said after his even-par 70 in North Carolina.

“Honestly, it was a little bit of a weight on my shoulders because I entered an extra tournament to try and get in through the ranking and then played the qualifier when obviously I hoped I wouldn’t have to by that point.

Adam Scott finishes Round 1 of the #USOpen in style with birdie and an even par round. pic.twitter.com/awvKuSUUFH

— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) June 13, 2024

“There was an extra couple weeks out here on the road, and I felt the pressure of that, and it’s only because I want to compete here and have a chance to win so badly that it was a little weight on my shoulders.

“But it was a blessing to not have to play the Memorial last week, which looked like a U.S. Open, and get some good practice in and be really prepared for this week.”

The Australian trio are all chasing leaders Rory McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay who defied the “brutal” course conditions and what Tiger Woods, who shot a four-over 74, said would be a “war of attrition” all week to shoot five-under rounds of 65.

McIlroy and Sergio Garcia were the only players in the entire field not to make a bogey and only 15 finished under par after the opening round.

Despite the lack of under-par scores, McIlroy said the course didn’t get as “fiery” as it might have.

“Yeah, I think so. I think we got lucky, as well. There was a lot of humidity early in the day, and then there was quite a lot of cloud cover the whole way through the day so it kept the golf course from getting too fiery,” he said.

“Selfishly for me, getting back out there in the morning (in the second round), it’s going to be nice. Hopefully, the clouds clear away and it’s a nice clear day for the guys in the afternoon.

“But it definitely wasn’t quite as fiery as I expected it to be this afternoon, which has yielded some decent scores.”

Why chip when you can just putt? 😅

Adam Scott gets it back to even par. pic.twitter.com/fU2J0REYJv

— U.S. Open (@usopengolf) June 13, 2024

Of the other Australians, Min Woo Lee opened with a three-over 73, Jason Scrivener was one shot further back, while Davis had five bogeys and a double in his seven-over 77.