Sam Burns and J.J. Spaun took turns trading the lead, sharing the lead and just being in the from the start to the finish of Round 3 of the U.S. Open.
On a day when very few players went under par — just 12 of 66 — both Burns and Spaun not only avoided disaster, but held serve.
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Burns had a one-stroke lead going into Round 3, and he’ll take a one-stroke lead into Sunday at -4
Spaun had a slight bobble at 18, a bogey, to drop him to -3.
After three rounds, just four players remain under par as this U.S. Open turns to Sunday.
Adam Scott, the 44-year-old who never seems to age, is one of them. Twelve years after claiming his lone major, he’s very much in contention at Oakmont, sitting at -3. He’ll be in the final pairing with Burns.
The only other player in red numbers if Viktor Hovland, who was once considered a “next big thing” but has not lived up to those expectations as of late. He’s at -1, no thanks to a bogey at 18, but he’ll take it.
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World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler never got it going on Saturday, firing an even-par round to remain at +4. But this will tell you something — +4 is good enough to be tied for 11th.
Is he too far back? Well, you might have heard that way back in 1973, Johnny Miller fired a final round 63 to win at Oakmont. He started that day six back. So yeah, there’s a chance on this course, which can produce some mighty swings on the scoreboard in very short order.