Fog Suspends US Open 2026 Round 1 at Shinnecock Hills

There's something almost poetic about Shinnecock Hills disappearing into the mist on the morning of a US Open. This ancient course, the only venue to host America's national championship in three different centuries, has always possessed an otherworldly quality—a sense that you're playing golf somewhere between the present and the past. On Thursday morning, that feeling became literal as fog rolled across Long Island and swallowed the course whole.

A Championship Suspended

The very early starters managed to get a couple of holes under their belts before the horn sounded at 12:05 PM UK time, pulling players off the course as visibility plummeted to unplayable levels. By the time the suspension was announced, no one had managed to dip below par—a testament to Shinnecock's unyielding character even in benign conditions.

An eight-way tie for the lead sat at even par, with Jackson Suber and amateur Ethan Fang among those sharing top billing after completing just a single hole. Fang, the young American who captured the 130th Amateur Championship at Royal St George's last June, will have to wait a little longer to continue his US Open debut. Fellow Americans James Nicholas and Caleb Surratt held the top two positions on the leaderboard, both having managed to par the opening two holes before the weather intervened.

Shinnecock's Brutal Reputation

For anyone who knows this course's history, the early chaos felt strangely appropriate. Shinnecock Hills doesn't do easy. In the four US Opens staged here since 1986, only three players have emerged with under-par totals. The 2018 championship saw none of the final 45 players in round three break the par of 70, while 2004's final round produced a staggering scoring average of 78.7—with the par-3 7th becoming so treacherous that officials were forced to water the green between groups.

With wind forecast to pick up throughout the day, this links-style layout was already promising to exact its toll. The fog merely added another layer to the challenge, reminding the world's best that on this exposed piece of property in the Hamptons, you play on nature's terms or you don't play at all.

A City Electric with Sport

What timing for New York. The Knicks have just claimed their first NBA championship since 1973, the World Cup is in town, and now one of golf's most storied venues is hosting the US Open. There's an electricity in the air—quite literally, if the weather reports are to be believed—and even the single road in and out of Shinnecock, notorious for creating traffic chaos, only adds to the sense that something special awaits those patient enough to endure.

The storylines queued up for this championship are compelling beyond measure. Can Scottie Scheffler complete the career Grand Slam, becoming just the seventh player in history to hold all four major titles? Will Rory McIlroy claim a seventh major, a record for any European? And might this finally be the week when Tommy Fleetwood or Tyrrell Hatton—second and sixth here in 2018—break through for their first major victory?

Waiting for Clarity

As players retreated to the practice areas for some chipping and putting, the official word came down: "Round 1 remains suspended. Next update: 8:00 AM ET." And so we wait, watching the fog drift across fairways that have challenged golfers for over a century, knowing that when it lifts, Shinnecock will be ready to resume its particular brand of beautiful punishment.

There's a lesson in all of this, one that Shinnecock Hills has been teaching since before most of us were born: great golf courses don't bend to our schedules. They exist on their own terms, in their own time, and we're simply fortunate to be invited to play.

Takeaway

Fog suspended first-round play at Shinnecock Hills with no players under par
An eight-way tie at even par includes Jackson Suber and amateur Ethan Fang
Shinnecock's brutal history suggests high scores are likely once play resumes
Major storylines await: Scheffler's Grand Slam bid, McIlroy's European record chase, and breakthrough opportunities for Fleetwood and Hatton