The golf gods blessed the US Open competitors who performed well enough to make it under the cut line of 7-over-par. An inch of rain last night softened the fairways and slowed the famously fast greens at Oakmont.
The U.S. Open, and especially its iterations at Oakmont, has been a proving ground for up-and-coming stars to win their first major. It was Ángel Cabrera’s first of two majors, including a 2009 Masters win, when he took home the trophy from Oakmont in 2007, and it was Dustin Johnson’s first of two majors, which also includes the 2020 Masters, when he won it at Oakmont in 2016. Two of the three players atop the leaderboard, J.J. Spaun and Sam Burns, have not won a major championship before.
J.J. Spaun recorded a tournament-leading 66 in the first round of play. But he let up some ground on Friday when Sam Burns tied the third-lowest score all-time at Oakmont in the US Open with a 65. After the third round, the two are neck-and-neck, with Burns coming in at 4-under-par and Spaun at 3-under-par.
A late surge from 2013 Masters Champion Adam Scott put him near the top of the leaderboard, finishing with a score of 3-under-par. He scored a birdie on holes No. 12, 13 and 17. Scott first won on the PGA Tour in 2002 and is now tied for second at the U.S. Open 22 years later.
He is tied with Spaun and will go out in the final pairing on Sunday. Spaun was set to have a tie atop the leaderboard and see himself in the final pairing after a birdie on hole No. 17 set, but a bogey on No. 18 dropped him into second place.
Viktor Hovland and Carlos Ortiz round out the top five golfers, with Hovland finishing below par at 1-under-par and Ortiz the sole even golfer.
Stars not shining as expected
Some of the biggest names in golf missed the cut after play completed on Friday, and many weren’t particularly close. Several former U.S. Open winners and the most recognizable names in golf all only got two swings at arguably the toughest course in the country.
Rory McIlroy, the winner of the 2025 Masters, might have let the difficulty of the course get to him. He was visibly upset when he smashed his club into the ground and also threw a club after a shot he disapproved of. McIlroy finished his third round with a score of 2-over-par and decided to speak to the media, an obligation he had ignored after the previous two rounds.
Scottie Scheffler, the betting favorite heading into the major, entered the third round with a score of 6-over-par. But the PGA Championship winner isn’t out of it yet. Scheffler finished Saturday with an even scorecard and is 4-over-par to put him in a tie for 11th place, keeping him within striking distance for the final round.
Shot of the day
It’s hard to top a hole-in-one by Victor Perez or an albatross by Patrick Reed on previous days. But I’m going with a shot that put a smile on my face as a novice golfer who sometimes struggles with his chipping — Tony Finau’s use of the Texas Wedge on the 10th hole for birdie.
Key stats of the day
In each of the last ten major championships, the eventual winner was either in first or second place at the end of the third round of play. In this tournament, that would mean that Burns, Spaun or Scott would take home the trophy at the end of this year’s tournament.
Neither of the last two 54-hole leaders in the last two U.S. Opens at Oakmont went on to win. In 2016, Shane Lowry entered the final day ahead of eventual winner Dustin Johnson by four strokes at 7-under-par, and would finish 3 strokes behind Johnson in second place, finishing 1-under-par. In 2007, Aaron Baddeley led the field at 2-over-par after 54 holes, and would finish 12-over-par, 7 strokes behind winner Ángel Cabrera.
Purse announced
The winner of the 2025 U.S. Open will take home $4.3 million, the same as last year. The total purse is $21.5 million, an amount that was increased by $1.5 million following the 2023 U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club.
Quotable
The world’s number one golfer, Scheffler, was asked about Sam Burns’s consistency in all aspects of life and how that affects performance. Considering Scheffler’s trophy cabinet and Burns’ position to start one, Scheffler’s answer was insightful.
“I think that consistency with the people around you is really important,” Scheffler said. “Sam’s got a coach that he’s had for a long time … When you have the trust between people that you’re almost like a family [and] you’ve worked together for so long — I think that’s how his team feels.”
“So when you have the great relationships with people, they’re able to pick you up when you need to be picked up, and then they’re there to kind of keep you in line when things are not going the way they should be and if your attitude’s a little bit off.”
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