First round of the US Open begins with Patrick Cantlay in the plus, Tiger Woods in the minus

Patrick Cantlay, who is seeking his first major title, was comfortably seated at the top of all of those holes. He made four birdies on the back nine and came into the clubhouse with an impressive 5-under-par (65) score in Thursday's opening round.

“I knew that at 7:40 in the morning it was going to be maybe the easiest game of the week because it wasn't windy, and probably the gentlest we'll ever experience,” Cantlay said. “I'm really happy with the round I played today.”

With much of the field still on the course, Cantlay was one stroke ahead of Ludvig Aberg, a 24-year-old Swede who finished second in the Masters and is making his first U.S. Open appearance. Matthieu Pavon shot 67 and Tony Finau shot 68. Aberg didn't miss a fairway in his opening round.

“He's anything but a rookie,” Finau said of Aberg. “I mean, he's not even the average first-rounder to play in a major championship. He's already been on some of the biggest stages and shown that he's going to be a world-class player.”

While many of the tournament favorites had their afternoon tee times — including Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau — the morning rounds suggested that low scores are possible despite the difficult course layout, at least compared to some previous U.S. Opens. Nine golfers from the morning groups finished the round under par, and several others on the course had a chance to do the same.

At the 2014 US Open on the same course, a total of 15 golfers were under par in the first round. Only three players finished the 2014 tournament under par. At the 2005 US Open on the Pinehurst No. 2 course, not a single golfer finished under par, and Payne Stewart won the 1999 US Open at 1 under par.

“Yeah, maybe you'll see somebody shoot a 66 or 65 or something like that again, but at the end of the day I think it's going to be difficult to get those kinds of scores as the course gets even harder and faster and a little wind comes up here and there,” said Sergio Garcia, who shot a 69 (1 under par) on Thursday.

Garcia's scorecard was bogey-free, a rarity at Pinehurst. In the three previous U.S. Opens here – a total of 1,368 rounds – only five golfers managed a bogey-free round, including one by Martin Kaymer, the 2014 champion.

“It's something I have a lot of respect for and something I'm very proud of,” he said. “I've had the pleasure of playing this championship for 25 years in a row, which not many people get to do. So I'm very, very happy to be here.”

A look at the leaderboard shows many other big names and former stars hoping to win another title. Tiger Woods began his round with a birdie and was in top form for most of the first nine holes. But he made five bogeys in a seven-hole stretch and finished the round with a 4-over 74.

“I'd like to hit some putts,” he said. “My speed wasn't quite there. I think I needed three putts two or three times today. If I can get that under control and not hit some iron shots as easily as I did then, I'll be right at par. It can go so far the other way here, the wrong way. It's just so hard to get back. This is a golf course that doesn't allow for a lot of birdies. It allows for a lot of bogeys and higher.”

Justin Thomas was 7 over par in the opening round and Phil Mickelson, who is still waiting for a win at the US Open and thus his career Grand Slam, finished 9 over par.

Although the course, with its turtleback greens, presented unique challenges from hole to hole, it was nonetheless home to many early heroics. With his 3-under-par 67, Pavon became the first player to score multiple eagles in a round of the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 by sinking long putts on both par 5 holes, Nos. 5 and 10.