Adam Scott dropped five shots over his final eight holes but Mat Goggin pressed to just one shot off the lead after the completion of a rain delayed opening round at the US Open.

Phil Mickelson’s three-under 67 at Merion Golf Club held up as the leader, leaving him one-shot clear of England’s Luke Donald and Australian Goggin who both carded 68.

Belgium’s Nicolas Colsaerts and Scotland’s Russell Knox were the only other players to break par, tied for fourth after one-under 69s. John Senden joined Jason Day with an even par round of 70 to be tied sixth.

Masters champion Scott restarted his first round at three-under par on the 12th hole but bogeyed out of the gate and then added another bogey on the 14th.

His tee shot on the 15th then sailed left out of bounds, forcing a re-tee from which he almost repeated the misery. From just a yard inside the course line his fourth shot found the green but two putts later he was posting a double bogey and over par for the round. Another dropped shot on the 17th when he failed to find the green in regulation left him with a round of 72 in a tie for 33rd.

Goggin played beautiful golf in tough conditions adding to his birdies on 13 and 15 from Thursday with gained strokes on the fourth and sixth holes. His bogeys came on the long par three 17th and the very difficult fifth hole.

Despite a near three year absence from the majors the Tasmanian looked like he never left.

Alistair Presnell was flying early but found a late bogey train to post a three-over 73, the same score as world no. 1 Tiger Woods and world no. 2 Rory McIlroy in a tie for 46th.

Geoff Ogilvy (+4), Aaron Baddeley (+5), Marc Leishman (+8) and Marcus Fraser (+9) rounded out the Australian tilt.

Players are already making their way back on course for the second round.