Macon’s Russell Henley tied for U.S. Open at the end of the first round

Russell Henley walked off the 18th green with his sixth birdie of the day and solo possession of the lead at the U.S. Open. Henley, the Stratford standout and Macon native, finished his round at -4 for the day.

Louis Oosthuizen would eventually reach the -4 number in the afternoon wave that wrapped up their first-round on Friday morning after play was postponed for darkness on Thursday.

The 121st edition of the U.S. Open got off to a late start after a delay due to fog. Henley got off to a slow start as well with a bogey on the first hole. He would bounce back with birdies at holes five, seven and eight to make the turn at -2. Henley grabbed another birdie at the 10th before dropping a shot at 12.

Henley, the former University of Georgia golfer, would close his round with birdies at 15 and 18 to take the solo lead.

Henley is tied for the lead with Oosthuizen over former major champion Francesco Molinari at -3 and two-time U.S. Open winner Brooks Koepka at -2. Koepka held the lead for a bit before he dropped a pair of shots on his back 9.

Henley is a three time winner on the PGA tour but it has been four years since he took home hardware at the Shell Houston Open in 2017. This is Henley’s first appearance in the U.S. Open since 2018 when he finished 25th at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club. Henley told NBC Golf after the round that he felt good about his opening round especially with his putting stroke. He said that he is still working towards being more competitive in majors.

“I am still trying to figure it out. I haven’t consistently played great in the majors.” Henley said “I am working my way towards that.”

Henley has never finished in the top 10 in a major but is off to a good start in his eighth appearance at the U.S. Open.

This story was originally published June 17, 2021 at 5:49 PM.