Rickie Fowler can always say he was the first to shoot 62 in the US Open.
But only by about 15 minutes.
Xander Schauffele soon matched him on the North course at Los Angeles Country Club with an 8-under 62 of his own, making Thursday a remarkable day for scoring in the major known as the toughest test in golf.
“It's not really what you expect playing a US Open,” world No.6 Schauffele said.
“But monkey see, monkey do. I was just chasing Rickie up the leaderboard.”
Those who came behind Fowler and Schauffele in the afternoon were on the cusp of joining them.
Dustin Johnson hit all 13 fairways and had a chance at 62 until his 5-iron on the par-3 ninth went into a bunker next to the 18th green.
That led to his only bogey and a relatively disappointing 64 to join Wyndham Clark in a tie for third place after the first round.
Johnson found his way into the record books, though, tying with Tiger Woods for the most rounds of 65 or lower in the majors (10).
Rory McIlroy had to settle for joint fifth with a 65 despite going out in 30, his best nine-hole start in any major.
It all started with Fowler, whose remarkable round included two bogeys when he missed the green on the 254-yard 11th and missed the fairway on the 17th on his front nine.
He set the record with a two-putt from just under 60 feet on the par-5 ninth. That's also when he noticed the leaderboard.
“I knew where I was at,” Fowler said.
"I would say from the middle of the round up until the ninth green, our last hole, I didn’t really know or see any scores. And then I saw that Xander was at seven (under) at that point.
"I’m not sure if he even knew where I was ... but it was kind of cool if he did to see he kind of latched on and we were taking off a bit.”
Schauffele was two groups behind and never too far away. The pair now share the major championship record with Branden Grace, who had a 62 in the third round at Royal Birkdale in the 2017 British Open.
The low scoring is sure to raise questions about LACC, a century-old club hosting a major championship for the first time.
Schauffele wasn't interested in that.
“My job is just to play. I try not to speculate too much,” he said.
“I’m going to take what the course can give me, and today it gave me a low one.
“It's just Thursday. It's literally just the first day of a tournament. It's a good start.
“You just wait until this place firms up. It's going to be nasty.”
It has already proved to be just that for some.
Justin Rose, who won at Pebble Beach in February and is back in form, opened with a 76. Jordan Spieth had a 72, while PGA champion Brooks Koepka shot 71.
Masters champion Jon Rahm, playing alongside Schauffele, opened with a 69. Typically that would be a solid start in the US Open but this one left him seven behind.
Tied with Rahm on one under after day one, Cameron Smith and Min Woo Lee led the Australian charge, while Lucas Herbert sits a shot further back in a tie for 38th.
