Lowry left Oakmont on Saturday night with a two-shot lead. The reality is there probably won’t be four birdies and an eagle out there for Day like he made on his way to a 4-under 66 that vaulted him up the leaderboard in the third round. But with pins tucked so close to Oakmont’s disastrous greenside rough, the margin between birdie opportunity and double-bogey disaster is razor thin.
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Justin Rose was at 8-over and Ernie Els 10-over.
Johnson is at 5 under with play winding down.
The move to wait on the decision was criticised by a number of players on social media, including former No.1s Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth.
Danny Willett, who surged past Spieth to win at Augusta, also finished at 9 over following a 1-over 71 on Sunday.
Finally, he’s a major champion. He picked it up and handed it a volunteer.
All eight of the players above him have yet to claim a major championship, ensuring his presence will increase the nerves as they hunt the biggest win of their lives.
Thompson birdied five of the first 13 holes at Blythefield in her bogey-free round to match Chun at 15-under 198. Lowry bogeyed the par-4 second after his approach flew into a bunker and dropped another shot on the par-4 fifth following an approach shot that also found the sand.
“I’m glad we didn’t have to play another four holes as I was getting exhausted towards the end but I’m really looking forward to getting out there on Sunday”. Join The Roar for live updates from the final day of the US Open. The four iron we hit in the bunker on the 14th was just an bad tee shot.
Shane Lowry’s once-comfortable lead at the U.S. Open is down to two shots.
Landry, the surprise of the tournament, is off to a sluggish start. Both were in pursuit of a first major.
That advantage was soon cut to three when the long-hitting Johnson, playing one group behind, followed suit by rolling in a 30-footer at the 15th to get to three under.
England’s Lee Westwood is tied fourth with American Daniel Summerhays at two under. He had to settle for a 70 and was nine shots behind Lowry. “I was trying to hack it out on the green and two-putt”. Should he be successful on Sunday, he will set the record for most majors played before winning one, breaking Tom Kite’s run of 72 before he won the 1992 US Open.
Oakmont presents his next big chance. “I’m not sure it’s going to be the same story on the first tee this afternoon but I’ve worked hard to get here”.
Players should consider themselves fortunate: The hole played even tougher in the 2007 Open.
Lowry, who has looked unflappable at Oakmont Country Club on one of the toughest golf courses in the world, posted a seven-under total of 203 in pursuit of his second victory on the PGA Tour.
“But when it comes down to it, you’ve just have to get the shot that’s in front of you”.
He has been so far.
The USGA has Oakmont primed and ready to punish the players in the final round, and all that may do is make this a boring slog to the finish line.
McIlroy opened with a 77 and came charging off the opening tee. That doesn’t mean it will stay there.
Out of the contenders Dustin Johnson has stuck the ball as purely as anyone just has not been able to sink those clutch putts. I was hoping for something even lower. In between he made five bogeys and a double-bogey. His 45ft putt on 18 took a right turn at the last second before dropping into the hole. But he’s got just one top-10 finish in 11 starts this season on the PGA Tour, so he wasn’t on many lists of pre-tournament favorites. He made birdie after being told of the potential Johnson penalty, but the Irishman lost his putting touch with three-putt bogeys on three straight holes.
Westwood has finished second or third in majors nine times, Garcia six times.
Lowry (-5, 14*), Landry (-3, 13*), Westwood (-2, 15*), Garcia, (-2, 14*), Johnson (-2,13*), Grace (-1), Piercy (E, 13*), Day, (+1). Mickelson didn’t hit a shot Thursday because of the three rain delays, meaning he had to play 34 holes Friday.
Something like a U.S. Open trophy to add to his ever growing collection of golf hardware.
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Lowry’s three-putt bogey on the 10th left Johnson two shots clear, but amid the confusion over the possible penalty, Lowry reduced the deficit with a tap-in birdie on the 12th.
