Donald was unrecognisable as the dominant force in golf and did not come close to making a birdie. So traumatised did he appear walking off the last it felt like an act of cruelty to ask him to account for his round.
He did not shirk that responsibility. “At the US Open, the margins are that much smaller and if you’re just a little bit off, which I was today. It’s tough,” he said. “And then you have to really rely on chipping it close and making some putts and I didn’t do that. My putter went cold today, otherwise I could have probably ground out a more respectable score.”
Only six players finished under par and five of those at one under, including Justin Rose, 2010 US Open champion Graeme McDowell and Tiger Woods. The leader by three shots is a little known qualifier from Tucson, Michael Thompson. It was Woods who stirred the passions of the San Francisco crowds, showing a degree of power and control not seen since his heyday.
His performance acquired added gloss when compared with his playing partners Phil Mickelson and Masters champion Bubba Watson, who played a version of the game better expressed as pin-ball golf.
After spraying it to all parts yesterday, Mickelson will start the second round today on six over and Watson eight over. Both were staggered at the quality of golf played by Woods. “That was the old Tiger,” Watson said. “It was beautiful to watch. That’s what we all come to see. Awesome to see him strike the ball.”
Andy Zhang looked every inch the 14-year-old, starting triple bogey, double bogey, bogey, bogey, bogey. A birdie at the last at least spared him the embarrassment of an 80. Beau Hossler, three years Zhang’s elder, carded a deeply impressive 70.
