Perhaps the talk of LIV Golf vs. the PGA Tour will subside for a few days, with the start of the U.S. Open at The Country Club officially here.
Or, at least, it will stall until 1:47 p.m., when Phil Mickelson arrives on the first tee. Mickelson, the face of LIV Golf, is still searching for that one missing piece of his Grand Slam résumé -- a U.S. Open win.
While most eyes will be on Mickelson -- and how he is received by the fans at this venue just outside Boston -- there are plenty of other things to keep an eye on for the year's third major.
Rory McIlroy is off to a good start with a bogey-free, 2 -under 33 on the back nine, his first nine holes, in the first round.
He is attempting to win a major the week after winning a PGA Tour event -- the RBC Canadian Open last week. The last player to do it? McIlroy.
He won the 2014 PGA Championship the week after winning the WGC-Bridgestone. No player has ever won the U.S. Open after winning on the PGA Tour the previous week.
McIlroy found that out on the par-4 fifth hole at The Country Club on Thursday. After he pushed his tee shot right, his ball ended up in the thick grass above a bunker.
His feet were well below the ball, so he managed to knock it only about 10 yards -- into another fairway bunker. He slammed his club wildly twice into the sand.