In difficult conditions, golf professionals Matt Fitzpatrick (England) and Will Zalatoris (USA) took the lead after the third day of the US Open in Brookline/Massachusetts.
The 25-year-old Zalatoris delivered the best round of the day with a 67 on the par-70 course and is reaching for his first major triumph with 206 strokes. The same goes for Fitzpatrick, who needed 68 shots on Saturday.
“The wind was really strong. That made it difficult,” Fitzpatrick said. Zalatoris commented on the demanding conditions: “This course is a beast. It was brutal.”
Before the final day, the stars also had to struggle. Defending champion Jon Rahm (Spain) stayed one stroke over par and goes into the final round as the first pursuer with 207 strokes in total. Industry leader and US Masters winner Scottie Scheffler (USA/208) is also lying in wait after a 71.
German starters clearly fail at the cut
The four-time major champion Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland/209) needed 73 strokes, but as a shared seventh he can still attack the leaders. Meanwhile, former champion Collin Morikawa (USA/212) slipped from the top spot to a shared 17th place.
The two German starters are no longer there. Yannick Paul (Viernheim) failed with 150 strokes just as clearly at the cut (143) as Marcel Schneider (Pleidelsheim), who even needed 157 strokes for the first two rounds. The duo was in good company: six-time Major winner Phil Mickelson (USA) also retired early with 151 strokes.
The US Open is all about the divided world of golf. After the US players’ association PGA carried out its threat last week and initially excluded 17 participants of the controversial Saudi Tour LIV from their competitions, the renegade professionals are part of the third major of the year.
US Open in Brookline/Massachusetts, status after the third round:
1. Will Zalatoris (USA) 206 strokes (69+70+67) and Matthew Fitzpatrick (England) 206 (68+70+68)
3. Jon Rahm (Spain) 136 (69+67)
4. Adam Hadwin (Canada) 208 (66+72+70), Keegan Bradley 208 (70+69+69), Scottie Scheffler (both USA) 208 (70+67+71)
7. Joel Dahmen 209 (67+68+74), Sam Burns (both USA) 209 (71+67+71), Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) 209 (67+69+73), …
17th, including Dustin Johnson 212 (68+73+71), Collin Morikawa 212 (69+66+77), 25th, including Jordan Spieth 213 (72+70+71), …
55. Bryson DeChambeau (all USA) 218 (71+71+76), …
Failed to cut after two rounds (143 shots): Sergio Garcia (Spain) 144 (74+70), Shane Lowry (Ireland) 144 (72+72), Francesco Molinari (Italy) 146 (73+73), Victor Hovland ( Norway) 147 (70+77), Yannick Paul (Viernheim) 150 (77+73), Phil Mickelson (USA) 151 (78+73), Marcel Schneider (Pleidelsheim) 157 (78+79)