LOS ANGELES :Overnight leader Rickie Fowler birdied the par-five first hole on Saturday to get his third round underway as the resurgent American looks to win a breakthrough first major title at the U.S. Open this weekend.
Despite setting U.S. Open records in his two rounds, Fowler entered the day with just a one-shot lead over playing partner Wyndham Clark with Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele a further stroke back at the Los Angeles Country Club.
Fowler, playing in his first U.S. Open since 2020, has been stuck on five PGA Tour victories since 2019 and despite his on-course struggles over the years, the 34-year-old has remained one of the most popular players on the U.S.-based circuit.
Fowler has already made a mark this week as his two-day 130 total tied the lowest 36-hole U.S. Open scoring record set by Martin Kaymer in 2014. He also set a tournament record with 18 birdies through 36 holes.
“Having a lead right now doesn’t really mean much. A little different once you get to after 54 holes because that’s when things really heat up,” Fowler said on Friday.
Fowler, who also held a share of the first-round lead with Schauffele, will have his work cut out with a leaderboard that features plenty of top-tier talent.
Clark, who beat a stacked field at Quail Hollow for his first PGA Tour victory last month, made the cut for the first time in three U.S. Open starts and will look to cash in on his best 36-hole position in a major championship.
Like his playing partner Fowler, Clark birdied the first hole under sunny skies and a light breeze in Southern California.
World number three McIlroy, who has gone nearly nine years since winning his fourth major title, crushed a 388-yard drive that led to a birdie of his own on the first.
Schauffele meanwhile ran into immediate trouble on one, needing three shots to get out of a fairway bunker and having to settle for a bogey.
Schauffele, who is ranked sixth in the world, is seeking his first major triumph and boasts top-15 finishes in all six U.S. Open starts, the longest streak at the event since Lanny Wadkins had six straight from 1981-86.
World number one Scottie Scheffler, trailing Fowler by five at the start of the day, started birdie-bogey-par.
Masters champion Jon Rahm, who extended the longest active streak of made cuts in majors to 16, shot an even par 70 in his third round.
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