Wyndham Clark fended off charges by fellow major winners Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick and Collin Morikawa to seize a four-stroke lead in Friday’s second round of the US Open at blustery Shinnecock.
Clark, the 2023 US Open winner, curled in a 33-foot birdie putt at the 18th hole to fire a one-under par 69 and stand on seven-under 133 for 36 holes.
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“That hole it kind of feeds toward the hole so I just thought I’d get it started,” Clark said of his last putt. “I had it on a good line and I almost really called it. I’m glad it went in. It was a great way to finish the round.” The 32-year-old American led England’s Fitzpatrick and compatriot Schauffele by four with Morikawa another stroke adrift.
On a 20-hole day, Clark parred his first 10, starting with two holes Friday morning to complete a six-under par 64 opening round.
A fog delay had prevented completion of the first round on Thursday. Clark began his second round with eight pars but lipped out a 43-foot birdie putt at the ninth then missed a three-foot comeback putt.
“Had an awesome day yesterday and then came out today, wasn’t as good, but I really fought and hopefully this is the toughest day for me,” Clark said.
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Wyndham Clark celebrates after a birdie on the 12th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.Source: AP
Clark, a PGA Tour winner last month in Texas, sank a five-foot birdie putt at the 12th and added a birdie putt from just beyond 28 feet at 13 to reach seven-under.
Clark rescued par from the right rough at 14 and left rough at 15 but found two fairway bunkers on the way to a bogey at the par-five 16th before closing with his best putt to boost his lead.
The day’s biggest talking point, however, has been the rare penalty handed to LIV Golf star Joaquin Niemann.
The Chilean was handed a two-shot penalty from an incident on Thursday in which he threw his club.
According to The Athletic’s Gabby Herzig, Niemann threw an iron from the rough a whopping 50 yards while carding an 11 on the sixth hole.
“I hit it two times out of bounds on the right, two bad swings,” Niemann explained before his second round. “Then, yeah, [I] got pretty frustrated. I’m not someone that like to be in that behavior. I’m the first one to judge myself when I don’t behave on the golf course.
“Yeah, that was a misbehave [on] my part. I felt like a little bit extra penalized with a two-shot penalty, but I think it is what it is. I think I’m going to learn from it. It definitely kind of helped me a little bit to have a better round today.”
Niemann then went out and shot five-under in his second round to pull himself within the cut line by one shot.
England’s Fitzpatrick fired a 70 to stand on 137. The 2022 US Open winner followed 10 pars with bogeys at 11, on a five-foot par putt miss, and 12, when he hit a cart path on his second shot.
He then birdied the par-five 16th from just inside 10 feet and sank a 13-foot birdie putt at 18.
“Two in the last three always nice, especially at a US Open,” Fitzpatrick said. “Didn’t really feel like I made too much up until those two holes really. Struggled a little bit off the tee on the back nine, but overall scrambled incredibly well to be where I am.”
Two-time major winner Schauffele, a back-nine starter, birdied three of his last four holes before the turn and sandwiched birdies at the fourth and sixth around his lone bogey.
Two-time major winner Morikawa made five birdies in his first 10 holes in shooting a 65. The American had a tap-in birdie at 15 and sank an eight-foot birdie putt at 16 but found a bunker at the par-three 17th and made bogey.
“I chipped it a lot better,” said Morikawa. That’s the difference of kicking yourself out of a tournament, keeping yourself in it. Got off to a good start, hit a couple of good iron shots, but made the up-and-downs.”
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Other rivals, meanwhile, fell by the wayside.
Two-time major winner Dustin Johnson pulled within a stroke with a birdie on 10 only to double bogey the par-three 11th and bogey 12 and 13 on his way to a 77 to finish 10 adrift on 143.
Fellow American Gary Woodland, the 2019 US Open winner, began with a birdie to reach four-under but made bogeys on four of the next six holes and shot 73 to stand on 140.
Justin Thomas, a two-time winner of the PGA Championship, went three-under on the back nine, made bogeys at the first and third holes but closed with a three-foot birdie putt at nine to shoot 68 and stand on 139.
Six-time major winner Rory McIlroy, the world number two from Northern Ireland, was set for a late start after opening on 69.
Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, who would complete a career Grand Slam with a victory this week, opened on two-over and goes off late as well.