Wind Machine
Saturday is shaping up to be perhaps the most challenging day of the championship so far in terms of the conditions. Low humidity, coupled with stronger sustained and gusty winds from the west and northwest, will likely result in firmer conditions as the day progresses. Holes that played downwind in previous rounds will play into the wind, requiring extra thought and consideration by the players and their caddies.
The winds are forecasted to peak in the morning and up to roughly 3 p.m., before easing a bit later in the afternoon. This could lessen the chances of a player farther back in the pack posting a low score early, as often happens on Saturday at a major championship. If the forecast holds, the later starters could have an advantage and make it difficult for the chasers to close the gap.
Of course, U.S. Open pressure also ramps up when the weekend arrives. There is a different feel to a championship once more than half the field exits. The thoughts swirling in a contender’s head can be as intense as the wind buffeting Shinnecock Hills.
Higgs Chooses Confidence
Harry Higgs, a 34-year-old journeyman pro from Dallas, is playing in just his second career U.S. Open this week. The fact that the player affectionally known as Big Rig is here – and in contention with a 36-hole total of 1-under-par 139 – was far from certain less than two weeks ago.
Playing in 36-hole U.S. Open Final Qualifying on June 8 in Gastonia, N.C., Higgs was struggling on his first nine holes and considered walking off the golf course, and perhaps even walking away from the game entirely. He was 0 for 6 in PGA Tour cuts in 2026 and things were looking bleak. Instead, he stuck with it and turned things around enough to shoot 64-66, good enough for first-alternate status. When five alternates from qualifying sites were added to the U.S. Open field on June 14, Higgs landed the fifth and final spot in the allotment, and he has made the most of the opportunity.
Higgs spoke after Friday’s round about “choosing” to be confident. “I’m doing all the right things. I’m doing the stuff that I know has helped me play the best golf for as long as I’ve done this, so why not believe in myself, right? Why not think that I can do well at this?”
Why not, indeed.