Wyndham Clark navigated a fiendish Shinnecock Hills Golf Club course, made a magnificent eagle at No. 16 and posted an even-par 70 Saturday to give himself a six-shot cushion entering the final round of the U.S. Open in Southampton, N.Y.
Clark was in the fairway, 275 yards from the pin at the par-5 and struck a 3-wood that avoided a greenside bunker and settled 4 feet from the hole for eagle. That boosted him from 6 under par to 8 under, and even after pushing his par putt at No. 18 past the cup, he made himself difficult to catch at 7-under 203.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler will be Clark’s biggest threat after a back-nine rally got him back into the championship. He made four birdies on the back, including three in a row for the first time at a U.S. Open, and shot 69 to get to 1 under for the week.
Scheffler turns 30 on Sunday and would complete the career Grand Slam with a victory.
Tied with Scheffler for second are Sahith Theegala (70), Sam Stevens (72) and South Korea’s Tom Kim (72). Theegala’s round of 70 featured exactly one bogey and one birdie, the latter coming at No. 18 when his approach sat down 12 inches from the cup.
Scheffler had one of only two sub-70 rounds on a day where the scoring average settled at 73.62, the highest of the week so far. Earlier Saturday, Argentina’s Emiliano Grillo shot a 3-under 67 featuring four straight birdies at Nos. 6-9, climbing to even for the championship.
Tied with Grillo at even are Keith Mitchell (70), Sam Burns (71) and Xander Schauffele (73).
