Unable to complete his opening round at the U.S. Open, two-time major champion Bubba Watson was disappointed for one particular reason aside from the delay in play.

Watson was two under the card with four holes remaining, a shot off the lead, when torrential rain forced the round to be abandoned at Oakmont on Thursday.

Winner of the Masters in 2012 and 2014, Watson will return to the course bright and early on Friday to complete his opening round, ending any hope of him watching game six of the NBA Finals in its entirety, as the Golden State Warriors bid to claim back-to-back titles at the expense of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

"I got lucky and made a 30-footer. It was a good day," Watson said.

"Obviously, I wish I could finish so I could watch the game all the way through tonight. But it will be some good rest and just get ready and play the last few holes.

"Hopefully we can get the golf in tomorrow as well."

Half of the 156-player field were yet to tee off as three weather delays wreaked havoc in Pennsylvania.

Watson, though, did manage to get the ball rolling on day one of the year's second major, providing the highlight with a 49-foot curler at the 10th hole for his third successive birdie.

He added: "The weather didn't affect my play. The golf course affects the play more than anything. We always got off the golf course before the rain. So the rain had no chance to affect us or anything. So the weather has no effect."

Prior to the turn, the outgoing 37-year-old American posted a mixed front nine, consisting of four birdies and three bogeys.

"Around here in '07, I finished nine over and finished fifth. When you've got one over, I've got eight more bogeys I can make and still finish fifth," Watson said.

"When you look at it from that perspective, I had a par five coming up after number three when I bogeyed, and I birdied. I bogeyed the other hole, and I birdied three in a row.

"So I just kept fighting. You don't really think about the mistakes or the bogeys because everybody's going to make bogeys out here. The golf course is that difficult."