Bryson DeChambeau takes over at the top of US Open leaderboard ...
Bryson DeChambeau will take a three-shot lead into the final round of the US Open as Rory McIlroy attempts to end his long major drought at Pinehurst.
DeChambeau carded a superb third round of 67 to reach seven under par, with McIlroy’s 69 leaving him joint second on four under with Patrick Cantlay and Matthieu Pavon.
Halfway leader Ludvig Aberg ran up a costly triple-bogey seven on the 13th as he fell back to two under par alongside former Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama.
DeChambeau won the US Open at Winged Foot in 2020 and has been in superb form in the majors this season, finishing sixth in the Masters and runner-up in the US PGA Championship to Xander Schauffele, who needed a record-low score of 21 under par to claim the title.
Bryson DeChambeau and Matthieu Pavon tee off in the final pairing at 2:21 p.m. ET.
— U.S. Open (@usopengolf) June 16, 2024“The crowd’s support has been fantastic and I will continue to feed off them if they continue to give it to me,” said a relaxed DeChambeau, who signed autographs during the third round and joked with fans as he weighed up whether to attempt to drive the green on the short par-four 13th.
McIlroy will play alongside Cantlay in the final round for the first time since becoming involved in a heated exchange with Cantlay’s caddie Joe LaCava in the Ryder Cup.
The four-time major winner felt LaCava’s celebrations after Cantlay holed a lengthy putt on the 18th green had been out of line, with the argument later continuing in the car park as McIlroy had to be restrained by team-mate Shane Lowry.
“I love the test that Pinehurst is presenting and you’ve got to focus and concentrate on every single shot out there,” said 2011 US Open winner McIlroy, whose last major victory came in the 2014 US PGA.
“It’s what a US Open should be like. It’s obviously great to be in the mix.”
