Rory McIlroy experienced a challenging finish to his first round at the US Open, dropping five shots in as many holes.

The Masters champion seemed poised for a solid start, finishing the front nine on two under par, closely trailing the leader JJ Spaun by two shots.

However, McIlroy's game took a turn for the worse, losing six shots from the first to the ninth hole after starting on the 10th tee.

He recorded a double bogey on the fourth hole, followed by more dropped shots on holes six, seven, and eight, resulting in a 74 and a finish on four over par.

Shane Lowry also struggled, with three double bogeys during his round. Despite an eagle on the third hole, he ended up with 11 dropped shots, leaving him at nine over par and unlikely to make the weekend without a significant improvement on Friday.

Meanwhile, clubhouse leader JJ Spaun made history on the first day by hitting four birdies and scoring a 66, the lowest for the opening nine holes at Oakmount. He leads at four under par, two strokes ahead of Si-Woo Kim and Thriston Lawrence at two-under.

Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau posted a three-over par 73, with late bogeys on the 15th and 16th holes. Xander Schauffele, the reigning Open champion, recovered from a tough spell to finish with two birdies and sit at two-over par.

World number one and US PGA Champion Scottie Scheffler began his opening round just after 6.20pm, while the Irish duo will start their second round on Friday at 6.25pm.