Wyndham Clark is on the verge of capturing his second U.S. Open title after posting a dominant performance through the first three rounds at Shinnecock Hills in Southampton, New York, building a six-stroke cushion over the rest of the field.
The 2023 champion stands at seven under par through 54 holes and is set to tee off at 2:30 p.m. (1830 GMT) Sunday alongside world number one Scottie Scheffler as he chases another major championship.
Scheffler, who is playing on his 30th birthday, finds himself in a four-way tie for second place at one under par. The world’s top-ranked player is chasing a career Grand Slam, having already claimed last year’s PGA Championship and British Open titles.
Joining Scheffler in that second-place group are South Korea’s Tom Kim and Americans Sahith Theegala and Sam Stevens.
The odds are heavily in Clark’s favor heading into the final round. Of the 21 players in major championship history who have carried a six-shot lead or better into the final round, all but one went on to lift the trophy.
The U.S. Open has long been regarded as golf’s most grueling test, and Shinnecock Hills lived up to that reputation on Saturday as even the sport’s elite struggled with the demanding conditions.
Back-to-back Masters champion Rory McIlroy had a difficult day, carding a 73 that included five bogeys on the back nine, dropping him to three over for the tournament and out of contention. PGA Championship winner Aaron Rai also struggled, shooting a 72 to finish alongside McIlroy on the leaderboard.
