WOLFF ON DOORSTEP
21-year-old takes two-shot lead in bid to become youngest Open champ since 1923
MAMARONECK, N.Y. — Matthew Wolff is playing his first U.S. Open and carving his own path.
It starts with shots he gouges out of the rough and ends with him making six birdies, the last one after a towering 7-iron from the first cut of rough settled 10 feet right of the pin, to match the best score — a 5-under-par 65 — at Winged Foot in a major.
Wolff, 21, hit only two fairways Saturday on a course with a blueprint for avoiding the rough. But the only number that mattered to him was his two-shot lead going into the final round.
‘‘There’s a lot of holes out there that maybe people would try to hit it in the fairway or maybe take the safe play because it is a U.S. Open and they know that pars are a good score,’’ said Wolff, who completed 54 holes at 5-under 205. ‘‘But I don’t really like to think of it that way. I like to go out there and do what I feel comfortable with . . . and see how it goes from there.’’
It’s going so well that Wolff is one round away from becoming the youngest U.S. Open champion since Bobby Jones in 1923.
Maybe he’s too young to realize that U.S. Open champions are supposed to play from the short grass. Or maybe he’s so dynamic and talented that it doesn’t matter.
Either way, he held a two-shot lead over Bryson DeChambeau, another guy with a recipe all his own, who only hit three fairways but managed to hang in there long enough to scratch out an even-par 70 to keep his hopes very much alive.
‘‘The round today was a huge battle,’’ said DeChambeau, who was still on the range in darkness late Saturday. ‘‘I was proud of the way I persevered out there. It was difficult, especially when you’re not hitting it straight in the fairway. For me, it felt like I kept myself in it, scrambled really well.’’
Whether it was the first cut or the nasty rough, Wolff kept giving his hips one last swivel before blasting away and giving himself birdie chances. He shot a 30 on the front nine, then let so many other players fall apart.
Patrick Reed, who was tied for the lead at the turn, couldn’t find the fairway and paid dearly with a 43 on the back nine. Reed had a three-shot lead after two holes but walked off the 18th green eight shots behind after shooting a 7-over 77.
‘‘Anyone in my position would be frustrated, especially with having the lead going into today,’’ Reed said. ‘‘The great thing is, there’s always tomorrow. And it’s a U.S. Open. Even though eight shots seems like a lot . . . you never know.’’
Collin Morikawa won the PGA Championship last month in his first try at 23. Now here comes Wolff in his first U.S. Open at 21. Is he next?
The last U.S. Open champion to win in his debut was Francis Ouimet in 1913. That also was the last time the U.S. Open was played in September.
‘‘I’m probably going to be a little antsy,’’ Wolff said. ‘‘It’s the U.S. Open, and I have a lead. I’m going to try to keep my nerves as calm as they can be. I put myself in a really good spot. I did everything that I could do up until this point, and . . . I promise you I’m going to try my best.’’
DeChambeau easily could have gone the same route as Reed. But after opening with two bogeys, he kept scrambling and went 15 holes in a row with nothing worse than a par. He rallied with two late birdies before missing a short par putt on the 18th. Still, he will be in the final group for the first time in a major.
The only other player under par after three rounds was Louis Oosthuizen, who put together a 2-under 68 and is four shots off the pace at 1 under.
Hideki Matsuyama (70), Xander Schauffele (70) and Harris English (2-over 72) were at evenpar 210.