U.S. Open leader Burns eyes first major title at historic Oakmont
On a punishing Oakmont course famed for crowning first-time major winners, Sam Burns finds himself on the brink of joining a historic list.
The 28-year-old American will carry a one-stroke lead into Sunday's final round of the 125th U.S. Open after firing a 1-under-par 69 in Saturday's third round to stand on 4-under 206.
Burns, who leads compatriot J.J. Spaun and 2013 Masters winner Adam Scott of Australia by one stroke, is among nine first-major hopefuls in the top 10.
The seven first-time major winners at Oakmont include 18-time major winner Jack Nicklaus, South African Ernie Els and Americans Johnny Miller and Dustin Johnson.
"It would be incredible," Burns said. "As a kid growing up you dream about winning major championships and that's why we practice so hard and work so hard.
"The opportunity to win a major is special. I'm definitely really excited for tomorrow.
"The history here and all the people that have been before me and walked these grounds and played here, it's really special."
Players with a 54-hole solo lead in a major for the first time, like Burns, have won three of the last five opportunities, including Bryson DeChambeau at last year's U.S. Open, fellow American Scottie Scheffler at the 2022 Masters and Japan's Hideki Matsuyama at the 2021 Masters.
Close Burns friend Scheffler, the world No. 1, has taken three major titles, two at the Masters and last month's PGA Championship.
"Scottie is an incredible player," Burns said. "We spend a lot of time together and being able to talk to him and just learn from him and ask him questions, it has been really cool.
"He's an easy guy to root for. He happens to be also the best player in the world. But, yeah, it has been nice to pick his brain and ask him certain things."
Burns, who shares a rental house this week with Scheffler and their families, admits he would love to experience some of the major-winning experiences that Scheffler has enjoyed, but not in an envious tone.
"Yeah, as a competitor, we show up to play to win," Burns said. "Watching him do that and watching him have success, it brings me a lot of joy."
Putting has been a joyful experience this week too. Burns and Ryan Fox of New Zealand are the only players without a three-putt bogey this week.
"The course I play at at home, Squire Creek, it has big surfaces and lots of slope," Burns said. "So I think I'm kind of used to having a 15- or 20-footer that may break 5 or 6 feet. I like that kind of artistic ability to kind of see the break."
Burns is known for not making changes in life or golf, but a first major win is one he longs for.
"My dad has always said you got to dance with who brought you," Burns said. "My coach and I have been working together since I was 15 or 16, and it seems way more complicated to go seek advice from someone else who doesn't know me or my golf swing."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Times
11 hours ago
- Japan Times
Ohtani's two homers lead Dodgers over Giants
Clayton Kershaw went seven scoreless innings and Shohei Ohtani hit a pair of home runs as the Los Angeles Dodgers rolled to an 11-5 victory over the visiting San Francisco Giants on Saturday. Teoscar Hernandez added a homer and Mookie Betts had a two-run double as the Dodgers evened their first series of the season against their longtime rival at a game each. In his 61st career appearance against the Giants and 59th start, Kershaw (2-0) allowed three hits and one walk. His five strikeouts put him 12 away from becoming the 20th pitcher and fourth left-hander with 3,000. Giants right-hander Landen Roupp (4-5) was roughed up for six runs on four hits in 1⅔ innings, with a career-high five walks. It was the shortest start of his two-year career. Casey Schmitt hit a grand slam against position player Enrique Hernandez in the ninth inning as San Francisco lost for just the second time in its past 10 games. It was Schmitt's second grand slam in as many games. Ohtani got the Dodgers going with a home run on Roupp's fourth pitch of the game. It was his first since June 2 and his first at home since hitting two against the New York Yankees on May 30. Los Angeles was just getting started. The Dodgers knocked Roupp from the game with a five-run second inning. Andy Pages had an RBI single and Michael Conforto followed with a run-scoring double. Two batters later, Betts hit a two-run double for a 5-0 lead, and Will Smith added a sacrifice fly to make it 6-0. Hyeseong Kim got into the act for the Dodgers in the third inning with an RBI single that landed in front of center fielder Jung Hoo Lee, his former Kiwoom Heroes teammate in South Korea. Ohtani's second home run of the game came in the sixth inning off right-hander Tristan Beck for an 8-0 lead, and Teoscar Hernandez added a two-run homer for a 10-0 advantage. It was Ohtani's third multi-homer game of the season and the 22nd of his career. With San Francisco catcher Logan Porter on the mound, Miguel Rojas hit a home run for Los Angeles in the eighth inning. Enrique Hernandez gave up five runs (four earned) in two-thirds of an inning for the Dodgers before left-hander Anthony Banda recorded the final out.
Japan Times
14 hours ago
- Japan Times
Messi denied late winner in Club World Cup opener
Lionel Messi and Inter Miami were held to a 0-0 draw by Egyptian side Al Ahly on Saturday as FIFA's new 32-team tournament got off to a smooth start in front of 60,927 fans in Florida. Messi was denied a storybook stoppage-time winner when he saw his curling shot from 20 yards out tipped on to the bar by Mohamed El Shenawy as Miami piled on the pressure in the final minutes of the game. Al Ahly, who was cheered on by over 10,000 supporters, was left to rue a first-half penalty from Egypt international Trezeguet which was saved by Miami's Argentine keeper Oscar Ustari. But the Egyptians also had El Shenawy to thank for another fine save in the dying seconds to keep out a header from Maxi Falcon as Miami pushed for three points in the Group A clash. For FIFA, which has faced heavy skepticism over the necessity for the tournament, the absence of a goal was the only disappointment on a night that delivered everything else that President Gianni Infantino had hoped for from the opening night. Fears of a low crowd for the opener eased as the seats in the 64,000-seat venue began to fill up with the stadium almost full at kickoff time. Thousands of fans of Al Ahly, the record 12-time African Champions League winner and the 45-time league champion of Egypt, arrived at Hard Rock Stadium well ahead of kickoff and made their presence felt with singing and chanting. The stadium, home to the NFL's Miami Dolphins, witnessed chaotic scenes last year at the final of the Copa America between Argentina and Colombia when fans broke into the ground after long delays to enter. But there was an efficient filter system set up for ticket and security checks well away from the stadium perimeter and there were no signs of any problems. Nor was there any indication that the controversial crackdown on illegal immigrants from the U.S. government had any impact on the game in the heavily Hispanic South Florida community. While there were no goals to celebrate, the game was far from boring, with Al Ahly enjoying the better of the first half before Miami improved significantly after the break. Al Ahly opened up Miami's defense with ease in the opening minutes of the game and Emam Ashour was denied by Ustari after being put through by Trezeguet. Palestinian international striker Wessam Abou Ali had an effort ruled out for offside in the 31st minute and then the Denmark-born forward had a fierce strike tipped over by Ustari. The penalty came when Telasco Segovia bundled over Zizo but Trezeguet's spot kick was weak and parried out with the former Aston Villa forward unable to react fast enough to the rebound. Miami was stronger after the break, with Messi coming close in the 64th minute with a free kick that grazed the post before hitting the side-netting, tricking part of the crowd into thinking he had scored. He nearly did in stoppage time, after a well-worked short-corner, but the outstretched finger tip of El Shenawy denied him. Miami faces Porto in Atlanta on Thursday before returning home to face Brazil's Palmeiras on Monday, and while those should be tougher tests, their Argentinian coach Javier Mascherano was upbeat. "The truth is we leave with the feeling that we could have won it in the second half. Going forward we have to do what we did in the second half, not have any fear, shed whatever baggage we had because when we play like that, we can play even with any team," he said. Al Ahly's Spanish coach Jose Riveiro, who only took charge of the team for this tournament, said his team should have finished the game off in the first half. "It's a game of mistakes. We had a decent amount of chances in the first half to put the game in a different space," he said before praising the team's fans. "It was like we were playing in Cairo and that was a surprise for me in my first official match with Al Ahly. To be here in the States and have it like you were playing at home is something that can probably only happen in this club," he said.
Japan Times
16 hours ago
- Japan Times
U.S. Open leader Burns eyes first major title at historic Oakmont
On a punishing Oakmont course famed for crowning first-time major winners, Sam Burns finds himself on the brink of joining a historic list. The 28-year-old American will carry a one-stroke lead into Sunday's final round of the 125th U.S. Open after firing a 1-under-par 69 in Saturday's third round to stand on 4-under 206. Burns, who leads compatriot J.J. Spaun and 2013 Masters winner Adam Scott of Australia by one stroke, is among nine first-major hopefuls in the top 10. The seven first-time major winners at Oakmont include 18-time major winner Jack Nicklaus, South African Ernie Els and Americans Johnny Miller and Dustin Johnson. "It would be incredible," Burns said. "As a kid growing up you dream about winning major championships and that's why we practice so hard and work so hard. "The opportunity to win a major is special. I'm definitely really excited for tomorrow. "The history here and all the people that have been before me and walked these grounds and played here, it's really special." Players with a 54-hole solo lead in a major for the first time, like Burns, have won three of the last five opportunities, including Bryson DeChambeau at last year's U.S. Open, fellow American Scottie Scheffler at the 2022 Masters and Japan's Hideki Matsuyama at the 2021 Masters. Close Burns friend Scheffler, the world No. 1, has taken three major titles, two at the Masters and last month's PGA Championship. "Scottie is an incredible player," Burns said. "We spend a lot of time together and being able to talk to him and just learn from him and ask him questions, it has been really cool. "He's an easy guy to root for. He happens to be also the best player in the world. But, yeah, it has been nice to pick his brain and ask him certain things." Burns, who shares a rental house this week with Scheffler and their families, admits he would love to experience some of the major-winning experiences that Scheffler has enjoyed, but not in an envious tone. "Yeah, as a competitor, we show up to play to win," Burns said. "Watching him do that and watching him have success, it brings me a lot of joy." Putting has been a joyful experience this week too. Burns and Ryan Fox of New Zealand are the only players without a three-putt bogey this week. "The course I play at at home, Squire Creek, it has big surfaces and lots of slope," Burns said. "So I think I'm kind of used to having a 15- or 20-footer that may break 5 or 6 feet. I like that kind of artistic ability to kind of see the break." Burns is known for not making changes in life or golf, but a first major win is one he longs for. "My dad has always said you got to dance with who brought you," Burns said. "My coach and I have been working together since I was 15 or 16, and it seems way more complicated to go seek advice from someone else who doesn't know me or my golf swing."
