Sunday at Shinnecock: Can Anyone Catch Wyndham Clark?

With 18 holes remaining at Shinnecock Hills, 2023 U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark can almost taste his second major championship. He posted a gritty even-par 70 on Saturday afternoon, scrambling his way to a six-shot lead and bringing a second U.S. Open title firmly within reach.

Clark played a brilliant Saturday back nine despite not having his best stuff from tee to green.

“It was very up and down, holy smokes,” Clark said after the round. “I hit some good shots; I hit some terrible shots. Yeah, I was a little frustrated with myself with some of the execution.”

After sending a wedge over the back of the 10th green, Clark played a daring bump into the slope on the back of the green that ended up five feet from the hole and converted the par save. Few other players who faced that shot succeeded in getting up and down on Saturday. On the 11th hole, he hit an aggressive greenside bunker shot five feet past the hole and yet again escaped with par.

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But his shot of the day came at the par-5 16th, where he hit a 275-yard fade that landed on the front of the green and trickled four feet from the hole, setting up the first eagle made on the hole all week.

If Clark is to stumble on Sunday, waiting in the wings is Scottie Scheffler, who carded one of just two under-par rounds on Saturday to climb into the final pairing and give himself a chance at completing the career grand slam.

“I think it's appropriate to understand what's at stake,” Scheffler acknowledged. “I have an opportunity to go out there and have a great round and give myself a chance to win the tournament.”

Scheffler charged up the leaderboard with three straight birdies on Nos. 14, 15 and 16, a stretch that included one of the shots of the championship: a towering wood into No. 16 that left a makeable eagle look. He missed the putt and tapped in for birdie. Scheffler’s back-nine 32 was excellent, but it could have even been a shot or two lower had he not missed putts from inside seven feet on each of his final two holes.

Rory McIlroy also mounted a charge on Saturday, birdieing three straight holes on the front nine to pull within shouting distance. But a sloppy back-nine 40, starting with a misfired wedge on the 10th, effectively ended his hopes of winning his second major championship of the season.

Aside from a potential Clark meltdown, quintessential Scheffler magic, or a red-hot run from one of the other contenders, here are a couple of things to watch that could impact Sunday’s action and have been popular topics of discussion among players on the grounds this week:

1. Rocks in the bunkers. The bunkers contain more sizable pebbles than players are accustomed to, increasing the challenge of getting up and down from the sand. Not every player is thrilled about them!

2. Bumpy greens. The Poa annua putting surfaces get quite rough and bumpy by the end of the day. Closing out a major championship is already difficult enough; humps and bumps sending putts offline only add to the difficulty. It wouldn’t be surprising to see some short, nervy putts missed late on Sunday. Not every player is thrilled about the bumpy greens either!

As for the million-dollar question: how likely is it that anyone but Wyndham Clark lifts the trophy on Sunday?

Unlikely, but not impossible.

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A six-shot lead may feel like a foregone conclusion, but the complexion of the championship can change in a hurry at Shinnecock Hills, especially the spicier the golf course plays. Unfortunately for those hoping to witness a chaotic final round, the forecast currently calls for benign weather, an ideal outlook for someone in Clark’s shoes who is trying to maintain a lead. Still, there will be plenty of opportunities to run into bogeys on Sunday and bring the rest of the field back into the mix.

“Yeah. Scottie is the best player in the world, and he's going to play probably really good,” Clark said on Saturday night. “He always does, but it's nice to have a six-shot lead on him.”

The biggest question is whether Clark, who acknowledged his propensity for volatility after the round, can deliver a steady enough performance to stave off one of the best players of this generation and a pack of seven others all beginning Sunday at even par or better.

Heading into one of the biggest days of his career, with a chance to validate his victory at Los Angeles Country Club and join the ranks of multi-major winners, Clark sounded calm and confident in his ability to finish the job.

“If I go out and execute and go through my process and hit the shots I know I can hit, I like my chances.”