OAKMONT
\nSam Burns outdueled fellow American J.J. Spaun down the stretch to grab a one-stroke lead after Saturday\u2019s third round of the US Open, setting the stage for a Sunday showdown at punishing Oakmont. Burns fired a one-under par 69 to stand on four-under 206 after 54 holes with Australian Adam Scott, the 2013 Masters champion, and Spaun sharing second on 207 and Norway\u2019s Viktor Hovland fourth on 209.
\nBurns, whose most recent win came at the 2023 WGC Match Play, and Spaun each found the right rough at 18 but Burns made the green and two-putted for par while Burns found a bunker and two-putted for bogey. \u201cI didn\u2019t drive the ball as well as I would have liked, but when I got out of position I did a good job of getting myself back in the fairway,\u201d Burns said. I was able to convert some of those and kept the momentum going. That was key to the round.\u201d
\nSpaun, whose only PGA Tour win came at the 2022 Texas Open, shot 69 and was happy despite the setback at 18. \u201cThis is the best I\u2019ve played in my career, for sure,\u201d Spaun said. \u201cI\u2019m just happy I\u2019m still within shouting distance \u2014 18 is just a tough hole if you\u2019re out of position. Bogeys happen at Oakmont.\u201d Scott, the 2013 Masters champion, birdied three of the last six holes to fire a 67.
\nThe 44-year-old can be the second-oldest US Open winner after American Hale Irwin, who was 45 when he won in 1990. Scott would also have the longest gap between major titles.
\n\u201cIt would be super fulfilling,\u201d Scott said. \u201cI really haven\u2019t been in this kind of position for five or six years.\u201dBut if I were to come away with it tomorrow, it would be a hell of a round of golf and an exclamation point on my career.\u201d Hovland blasted out of a bunker to set up a tap-in bogey at 17, but made bogey from a bunker at 18 to shoot 70. \u201cI\u2019ve got a chance tomorrow. If I shoot a low round then anything can happen,\u201d Hovland said. \u201cBut there\u2019s a lot of good players around me… That forces me to play some really good golf.\u201d
\nThe four will play in the last two pairings once again on Sunday in a tension-packed final round for the $4.3 million top prize.Last-group playing partners Burns and Spaun traded the lead all day, a wild early exchange ending when Burns made a tap-in birdie at the fifth to match Spaun at three-under. Burns sank a seven-foot birdie putt at the par-three 13th but fell back with a bogey at 16. Both birdied the 17th before the closing drama.
\nMexico\u2019s Carlos Ortiz fired a 67 to stand fifth on level par 210, a stumble at the last hole dooming a bogey-free bid.Ortiz made the cut for only the third time in 10 majors and has never finished in a major top 50. \u201cIt would be great. Winning any kind of tournament is awesome,\u201d Ortiz said. \u201cI\u2019m just going to do my best and hopefully that\u2019s enough. If not, that\u2019s all I had.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
OAKMONT Sam Burns outdueled fellow American J.J. Spaun down the stretch to grab a one-stroke lead after Saturday\u2019s third round of the US Open, setting the stage for a Sunday showdown at punishing Oakmont. Burns fired a one-under par 69 to stand on four-under 206 after 54 holes with Australian Adam Scott, the 2013 Masters […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":484522,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-484495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n