A poor second nine left Rory McIlroy with a 4-over 74 in the first round of the U.S. Open at Oakmont. He played his final six holes in 5 over. This U.S.

The sky at Oakmont Country Club was somehow both hazy and bright, and the contradiction was a nice accidental framework for what we saw from Rory McIlroy in his opening round of the U.S. Open on Thursday.

OAKMONT, Pa. — After a sparkling opening nine holes, Rory McIlroy posted his first bogey of the U.S. Open and made a beeline across the concrete bridge that spans the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Not a soul was within 15 feet. Cars and 18-wheelers whizzed below, and with plenty of golf left to play, two questions still hung overhead: