Daring adventure and monotonous plodding (and nearly everything in between) took place at Whistling Straits in Thursday’s opening round. If you need to skim the foam off your evening latte, you’ve found the proper place.

Club Pros

Brian Gaffney did what club pros do: He made doubles and singles, but he also made seven birdies. That’s why he’s in the top 25 after Round 1, in position to break the three-year cut-drought for his brethren. A trio of professional instructors tied at +2 for the next best rounds of the day. They have a shot at weekend reservations, but they’ll have to beat par on Friday to do so.

Favorites

Dustin Johnson won’t go away. He has the tenacity to compete in major championships. Does he have an extra gear to avoid becoming his generation’s Greg Norman?

Also, marquee groups are overrated. Rory, Jordan and Zach in the afternoon wave moved benignly around the course, unable to sustain any momentum — much the same as Tiger Woods, Martin Kaymer and Keegan Bradley in the morning. The low round of the featured groups was Kaymer, the Whistling Straits defending champion who sits at 2-under par. Rory and Jordan are both a low-round away, teetering on contention at 1-under.

Surprises

David Lingmerth did win at Memorial this year, validating his promise. Now he’s stepping up in a major. The Swede birdied five of his first seven, then went on a par run for the remainder of the round. He stands in second place after Round 1, a stroke behind Dustin Johnson.

Danny Lee is in the midst of a knockout run. He continues to post numbers that remind us of his stellar amateur career, capped off by a U.S. Amateur win at Pinehurst No. 2.

The Course

Driving might be important, but approach shots are critical, according to Ted Tryba on the PGA app. Unlike the last major championship venue, the Old Course, there are no places to miss around the greens. In other words, lads, throw us some darts!

The Weather

Gusting winds popped as the afternoon wore on. The early threesomes certainly had an advantage as zephyrs, mistrals and chinooks reached double-digits as the afternoon wave teed off. Unfortunately for the later half of the field, winds will die down to single digits all day Friday; ergo, no advantage to be gained tomorrow morning.