US Open Third Round Live Updates, Leaderboard, Highlights

It's a smidge off the historic lead he'd had after 17 holes, but even a bogey at 18 couldn't erase Wyndham Clark's Saturday steadiness. He was tied for the lead after 54 holes in 2023 and shot a final-round 70 to win by a stroke.

It's good when they compare your lead to the largest in major history. Only Tiger Woods at the 1997 Masters entered a final round with a bigger edge—nine shots—than Wyndham Clark's seven. The largest blown 54-hole lead? Six shots.

Second shot from 275 yards away lands inside of five feet. Eagle putt. In.

Twenty-three of the last 30 majors have been won by a player in the final group. Most recent time someone crashed the party? J.J. Spaun at last year's U.S. Open. He was a shot behind Sam Burns through 54 holes and wound up winning by two.

"I hit a great drive and just had a perfect number for my lob wedge."

Looking ahead? Barring a late flop from Wyndham Clark and unless someone gets to 2 under and stays, it'll be Clark and Scottie Scheffler together through the final 18 holes. FYI, it's Scottie's 30th birthday and Father's Day (he has two children).

Big brother Matt is a U.S. Open champion but little brother Alex Fitzpatrick is doing the family proud in his first go-round in the event.

High-profile foes have charged, but Wyndham Clark has endured. "He understands what he does best in those moments," sports psychologist Julie Elion said. "He's a wonderful person and he's working really hard. He's showing a masterclass."

Scottie Scheffler on his uncharacteristic emotion on Saturday's back nine: "I felt the tournament was kinda slipping away from me."

Rory McIlroy generated quite a pop from the Shinnecock crowd with birdies at 5, 6 and 7, but a 40 on the back nine—in which he bogeyed five of six par-4 holes—left him 3 over. All six of his major wins have come with 54-hole leads.

Scottie Scheffler is in the clubhouse after a 69 got him to 1 under for the tournament, trailing by five with Wyndham Clark through 11 holes. A note for Sunday: Each of Scheffler's four major wins have come after a 54-hole lead.

Sam Stevens drops shots at the 10th and 11th, Scottie Scheffler gives one back at 17, and Wyndham Clark's lead gets a little more comfortable.

Scottie Scheffler tapped in for a birdie at 16 and prompted NBC's Dan Hicks to suggest, "The quest for the career grand slam has come into clearer view."

Just when it looked like Wyndham Clark had settled into a groove, he sent an approach into a green-side bunker on No. 8, chipped across to the fringe and missed a par putt. Then, he drove into the rough on 9. Stay tuned.

Wyndham Clark's recipe for a three-shot lead seven holes into the third round? Do everything well enough and some things very well. Clark is second in the field in average driving distance (340.9 yards) and third in greens in regulation (74 percent), while hitting 60 percent of his fairways (tied for 51st).

A chip-in for birdie on the 14th got Scottie Scheffler back to even and onto the first page of the leaderboard. And it prompted an outburst, too.

It's windy everywhere. But if you're wondering why the wind is particularly difficult to contend with at Shinnecock, it's all about the triangles.

We've all been there, right?

Wyndham Clark started the day at 7 under, then followed a bogey at No. 1 with three straight pars. But a two-putt birdie at the fifth has him back where he started.

Not familiar with Sam Stevens' work on the golf course? Don't feel bad. The soon-to-be 30-year-old (his birthday is July 4) has never finished better than T-23 in 10 major tries and arrived this week ranked 54th in the world.

Bogeys at 1, 2 and 3 weren't an ideal way for Justin Thomas to start but an eagle at 5 got him back to even par for the tournament. And he looks good.

He probably won't win, but Spencer Tibbits was good for a late-round highlight on 17.

Three straight birdies have Rory McIlroy, who won his second straight Masters two months ago, on the first page of the leaderboard.

Fifteen minutes after he teed off, Wyndham Clark's lead was halved from four shots to two.

Saturday Night Live alum Will Ferrell isn't in the third-round field at Shinnecock, but he was in full U.S. Open character during a mini-golf outing on Long Island.

Nobody not already within five shots of the lead at the end of Friday had gotten there until Rory McIlroy birdied No. 7 to get to 2 under, and three-time major winner Jordan Spieth illustrated the challenges of heavy winds and tricky greens.

Four-time major winner and world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler can become the latest member of the Career Grand Slam Club with a win at Shinnecock, but his quest started with difficulty Saturday when he bogeyed the first and holes to fall nine shots off the lead.

Twenty-nine players before Clark have had four-shot leads midway through a 72-hole major but only 11 won. The last time there was a four-shot leader at the U.S. Open after 36? Dustin Johnson at Shinnecock in 2018. He shot 77 on Saturday and finished tied for third.