Here are five players to watch when the 116th US Open begins Thursday at Oakmont:

THE CONTENDERS

Brooks Koepka

Age: 26. World ranking: 16

US Open starts/cuts made: 3/2

Best finish: T4 (2014)

Might win because: Koepka is 25 under par over his past eight PGA Tour rounds, including three 65s and a 64. While those numbers aren’t expected at Oakmont this week, it speaks to the form Koepka brings with him. He has been second in each of his last two starts, losing to Sergio Garcia in a playoff at the Byron Nelson, then finishing three shots behind Sunday’s winner at the St. Jude Classic. One concern: He’s 127th in driving accuracy. That won’t work.

Dustin Johnson

Age: 31. World ranking: 6

US Open starts/cuts made: 8/7

Best finish: T2 (2015)

Might win because: Can he put himself in position to win his first major, and if so, can he get out of his own way to actually claim it? Perhaps nobody in golf has as much raw talent. But golf is just as much a mental game, and there’s the rub. Johnson has won at least one tournament on the PGA Tour in all eight of his previous full seasons, and he’s still looking for his first victory this year. Like Koepka, he comes in hot: He was fifth at the St. Jude and third at the Memorial.

Shane Lowry

Age: 29. World ranking: 41

US Open starts/cuts made: 3/1

Best finish: T9 (2015)

Might win because: His greatest accomplishment might have come as an amateur in 2009, when he won the Irish Open. Lowry turned pro a week later, and has begun to play his way onto PGA Tour leaderboards on a consistent basis. Over his past two seasons (24 tour starts), he has had four top-10 finishes, eight top 25s, and his only win, at last year’s Bridgestone Invitational. He tied for ninth at Chambers Bay in last year’s US Open, one of only two top 10s for Lowry in 13 major appearances.

Kevin Kisner

Age: 32. World ranking: 26

US Open starts/cuts made: 2/1

Best finish: T12 (2015)

Might win because: Kisner drives it straight (19th in fairways hit) and putts it well (sixth in putting average), two things he’ll need this week. He’s another one who seems to be near the lead often. Starting with last year’s Players, where he lost in a playoff, Kisner has eight top-10 finishes, including his lone win, at the RSM Classic late last year. He got off to a hot start (ninth at Hyundai, T5 at Sony), but hasn’t done much since, with three missed cuts in his last four starts.

AND THE WINNER IS . . .

Jason Day

Age: 28. World ranking: 1

US Open starts/cuts made: 5/5

Best finish: Second (2011, 2013)

Will win because: He’s the best player in the world, is currently playing like it, is motivated, and Oakmont crowns decorated champions. Six of the first eight Oakmont Open winners are in the World Golf Hall of Fame. Day will join them if he keeps up this torrid pace. He has eight Tour wins since January 2015, and also owns an excellent US Open record: In five starts, he has two seconds, a fourth, ninth last year, and was T59 in 2012. He’s ready to win.

BY MICHAEL WHITMER | GLOBE STAFF