Bryson DeChambeau, who has suddenly turned himself into a fan favorite, is in a prime position to pick up his second major championship title on Sunday afternoon.
DeChambeau, after a dominant outing on Saturday, enters the final round at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina with a three-shot lead over the field. He carded a 3-under 67 on Saturday, and nearly matched the low round of the day, to nearly run away with the U.S. Open.
Though he started the final round with a clear advantage, it didn’t last long. Rory McIlroy — who is still searching for a major championship title after a near-decade drought — quickly cut the gap down to just a single stroke on the front nine, though a bogey at the par-5 fifth dropped him two strokes back again.
Both Matthieu Pavon, who is in the final group with DeChambeau, and Patrick Cantlay bogeyed early. Only Hideki Matsuyama, Tony Finau and Ludvig Åberg were under par for the week as they all approached the turn.
The way Pinehurst has been playing so far, it’s still very much anybody’s tournament to win.
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DeChambeau is leaving the door open
Bryson DeChambeau has had opportunities to put distance between himself and the field, he just hasn’t been able to capitalize. The latest came on No. 7 when he had a 341-yard drive that left him just 88 yards to the pin. He hit a solid approach, just a little bit hot, leaving himself 14 feet for birdie. It could have been better, and he knew it. Then he burned the edge on the birdie putt, settling for another par.
That might ultimately be good enough — he still has a two-stroke lead — but he certainly knows trouble can be found quick, and it sure would be nice to have a cushion when/if it does come.
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Cantlay gains a stroke
If you’ve watched any of this tournament, you’d have thought Patrick Cantlay was out of it 15 different times … and yet here he is, now in a tie for second after a birdie at the seventh, just two back of DeChambeau.
Cantlay’s entire tournament is exactly what a U.S. Open is supposed to be — grinding out par after par after par, sprinkling in a birdie here and there, and avoiding the crooked number.
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You ever practice that, Ludvig
Golf is all about adaptation. You have to hit from weird angles, ball below your feet, above your feet, sometimes you have to turn around and punch out left-handed (if you’re a righty) and vice versa. And then there was this lie Ludvig Åberg faced on No. 7 …
He’d go on to bogey the hole and is now six back.
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Spot on the Olympic team on the line
Four Americans will head to Paris next month for the Olympics. Two of those players are locked — Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele. Two more spots are up for grabs, and right now they belong to Wyndham Clark and Collin Morikawa. However, if Patrick Cantlay can get into the top three today, he’ll earn a spot.
Despite some struggles and missed birdie putts, Cantlay continues to hang on. He’s at -3, in a tie for third at the moment.
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How is Pinehurst playing?
Actually … slightly easier than it has in the first four days:
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While we wait …
… for the leaders to tee off, here are few stories to read from Jay Busbee on the ground in Pinehurst:
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So how is the course playing in the early going?
Fifty-two players are on the course … 12 are under par.
Where are the birdies coming from? The par-5 fifth and the short par-4 third and 13th holes.
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Five storylines of Round 4
Round 4 is underway, though we’re still a couple hours from the leaders teeing off. To get y’all ready, here are the top five storylines as we see them:
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Bryson DeChambeau, man of the people, emerging as the face of golf.
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Rory vs. Patrick. McIlroy and Cantlay haven’t been paired together since the Ryder Cup when, well, things almost turned to blows. How will these two interact today? Going to be interesting.
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And speaking of Rory, is this the day he finally breaks his majorless streak that dates back 10 years? Or could it be Cantlay, may be the best player in the world to have never won a major (now that Xander Schauffele is off the list)?
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Welcome to the show, Ludvig Åberg. Playing in just his third major, Åberg is already being anointed as the next big thing. And why not? He finished runner-up at the Masters in April, and now he’s got a legit shot to win the 124th U.S. Open.
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Will Pinehurst relent? The guess here is the course will play similar to how it’s been all week — tough, but gettable in spots. DeChambeau has to feel like even par for him will get it done.
Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there. Enjoy U.S. Open Sunday.
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