Rory McIlroy’s up-and-down weekend at the U.S. Open took another roller coaster of a turn Saturday, as the world No. 2 imploded on the back nine with five bogeys to finish at 3 over and fall out of contention.
McIlroy, whose only win in the tournament occurred in 2011 at Congressional Country Club, sank a 66-foot birdie on No. 6 as part of a string of three consecutive birdies, but he went from potentially playing in one of the final pairings to an earlier tee time for the final round at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.
It marked a second consecutive day when McIlroy struggled after the turn, after finishing the back nine even during the opening round of the U.S. Open.
He shot 3 over across those holes Saturday, even recording a double bogey on No. 15. Though McIlroy avoided another double during the third round, he bogeyed Nos. 10, 12, 14, 15 and 18.
McIlroy, who heads into the final round tied for 17th and trails leader Wyndham Clark by 10 strokes, finished in the top 10 at both of the majors earlier this season, winning the Masters — his second consecutive victory in the tournament — and finishing in a tie for seventh at the PGA Championship last month.
One year after a top five finish at the U.S. Open, Cam Young won’t be anywhere near there when Sunday begins. That means the search for the long-awaited first major of his career will likely extend into the British Open next month.
The Westchester native and third-ranked golfer struggled again in the third round, finishing 3 over and moving to 5 over for the tournament. And after winning two tournaments — the Players Championship and the Cadillac Championship earlier this year — Young has faltered for a second consecutive event after shooting 8 over at the Memorial Tournament earlier this month.
“I don’t know, I didn’t play awful, didn’t play great and I’m not in a great spot going into [Sunday],” Young said following his round.
Young collected a birdie and a par across his final three holes, and he hit his second shot on the 10th hole to within 3 inches of the pin to set up a birdie putt. But mixed in between the flashes were more holes of disappointment, as he recorded bogeys on four of his first six holes and added strokes on Nos. 6, 11 and 18.
Sahith Theegala is positioned for the best major appearance of his career after shooting an even-par 70 to sit in a tie for second place — at 1 under — heading into Sunday.
“Honestly I was just hoping I would get into the tournament,” Theegala said following his round. “Honestly bummed I missed a couple majors last year with injury and started this year with pretty poor status, honestly. I wasn’t in any of the elevateds or majors. The goal was just to get here.
“I really didn’t have too much expectations, other than to just really enjoy the week and embrace the challenge, and it’s worked out really well so far.”
Emiliano Grillo joined Dustin Johnson — in the opening round — as golfers to make four consecutive birdies this week, per the Elias Sports Bureau. … Dylan Wu and James Nicholas recorded the worst scores of the third round from the earliest tee times, finishing at 12 over. … New Jersey native Chris Gotterup shot 3 over to sit at 7 over heading into the final round.
Sam Stevens shot 2 over to sit in a tie for second at 1 under entering Sunday, positioning the 29-year-old with a chance to top his previous best in a major — when he was in a tie for 23rd at last year’s U.S. Open.
“I can’t remember where I was to start the final round last year at Oakmont,” Stevens said. “Maybe I was, like, in 15th place or 20th, but at the time that felt like a pretty big deal to me. Now this feels like a big deal, but I feel — I’m just excited to play, which is a good place to be.”
