Rose savours ‘cool moment’ after Tiger-style start at US Open

Justin Rose led a scoring onslaught at Pebble Beach, but the fourth-ranked Englishman wasn’t getting carried away with his record-equalling 65 in the first round of the US Open on Thursday.

“I wouldn’t say it’s exhilarating, because I feel like my mindset is I am in a 72-hole tournament,” said Rose, who birdied the last three holes to match the lowest US Open round ever shot at Pebble Beach — first achieved by Tiger Woods on the way to a 15-stroke victory in 2000.

Rose, who led by one stroke after a day that saw 39 players break par, may not be contemplating that kind of dominant week, but he did allow himself a moment to take it all in at an iconic US Open venue.

“This is just a very small step towards (an) outcome,” he said. “So you don’t feel that buzz that you would on a Sunday, but you can’t help but look around over your shoulder, and damn, this is Pebble Beach! Shot 65 and you’re in the US Open.

“It’s a cool moment. Whatever transpires the rest of the week, it was a cool moment,” he said.

Rose has already won on one scenic California coastal course this year, with his victory in the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines.

And he’s put himself in position to challenge for a second US Open title, to go with his 2013 triumph at Merion.

Rose was four-under through the first seven holes, aided by an eagle at the par-five sixth.

His only bogey of the day at the eighth was followed by seven pars before he streaked to the finish line.

“I was trying to stay patient with myself mentally, but kept up-and-downing the ball, kept the momentum up,” Rose said. “And then I got rewarded with a hot finish, birdieing the last three.

“I took a good round to a great round.”

Rose played alongside Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth, amid the bustle that accompanies all of Woods’s rounds.

He said playing with Woods at the Memorial Tournament recently was good preparation.

“The crowd were big, huge — six or seven deep, pretty much all the way,” he said. “So there’s the obvious noise. I had to hit some shots where I didn’t quite have the setup or the peace and quiet that I would normally hit a golf shot under, I had to try to keep pushing that.”

Rose didn’t mind, and he’s hoping it was just a warm-up for what he’ll face if he’s in contention come Sunday.

“You play late on a Sunday afternoon it’s noisy,” he said. “It’s what you want.”

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