Burns posts 65, avoids calamity at Oakmont

GOLF

Golfer enters weekend with the lead at US Open but not much of a cushion

Sam Burns plays a shot from the seventh tee during the second round of the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club on Friday in Oakmont, Pa. PATRICK SMITH — GETTY IMAGES

Scottie Scheffler plays out of the Church Pews bunker on the third hole during the second round of the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club on Friday in Oakmont, Pa. CHARLIE RIEDEL — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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By Doug Ferguson

The Associated Press

OAKMONT, Pa. >> Sam Burns avoided a meltdown that ruined his opening round at the U.S. Open and wound up with a big par save on his last hole for a 5-under 65 and the 36-hole lead. Best of all, he was long gone before the real calamity arrived late Friday afternoon at Oakmont.

Rory McIlroy threw a club in disgust and smashed a tee marker. For punishment, he gets to come back for two more rounds because he birdied the 18th to make the cut.

Shane Lowry absent-mindedly picked up his golf ball on the 14th green without marking it.

Thriston Lawrence became the only player to reach 6-under par. He promptly made six bogeys and a double bogey over his next nine holes. Thomas Detry can appreciate the suffering. He was challenging for the lead until three double bogeys in a three-hole stretch.

And then there was Phil Mickelson, in what likely is his 34th and final U.S. Open. He was just outside the top 20 until two double bogeys in his last four holes for a 74 to miss the cut.

The cut might not be official until Saturday morning. If the second round wasn’t brutal enough, play was halted by bad weather just as Lawrence had a 4-foot putt on the last hole to finish a wild round that was approaching six hours. The day ended with rain pounding the course.

Scottie Scheffler, coming off three wins in his last four starts, had his sixth straight round over par in the U.S. Open with a game that didn’t look familiar. He still scratched out a 71 and was seven shots behind.

“Today was, I think with the way I was hitting it, easily a day I could have been going home,” Scheffler said. “And battled pretty hard to stay in there. I’m 4 over. We’ll see what the lead is after today, but around this golf course I don’t think by any means I’m out of the tournament.”

Burns was a regular birdie machine — at Oakmont, no less — playing in the morning under cloud cover and little wind and flushing his irons so well that all six of his birdies were inside 10 feet.

He was at 3-under 137, one shot ahead of J.J. Spaun, who fell out of a share of the lead with a bogey on the 18th, his sixth in his round of 72.

Burns and Viktor Hovland (68) each have 11 sub-par holes over 36 holes, the most in three U.S. Opens at Oakmont since it switched to a par 70 in 2007. Hovland was two shots behind.

Only three players remained under par, the fewest in seven years the U.S. Open.

Burns can only imagine where he would be if not for a shocker of a finish Thursday, when he was one shot out of the lead and then played his last four holes in 5-over par.

“I played really well yesterday other than the finishing holes. So I think today was just kind of getting mentally ready to come out and try to put a good round together,” Burns said.

“It was unfortunate, but there was too much good to focus on the little bit of bad.”