Thomas sets record with 63

Harman leads by 1 after three rounds

ERIN, Wis. — A U.S. Open short on big names and a leaderboard that at times seemed like a phonebook of random people, found a bright star under a partially cloudy sky at Erin Hills golf course.

Justin Thomas made history on Saturday when he shot a 63, shattering a record that stood for 44 years. His nine-under score was the lowest relative to par in U.S. Open history. And the 63 tied the eight-under mark set by Johnny Miller at Oakmont in 1973.

As good as that round was, Thomas has not run away with the tournament. In fact, he’s not even leading after three rounds. Brain Harman has a one-shot lead at 12 under. Tied with Thomas at 11 under are Brooks Koepka and Tommy Fleetwood. Rickie Fowler is at 10 under.

“I’m not sure when it’s going to sink in or when I’m going to realize what I did,” Thomas said. “I know one thing, if it happened tomorrow and the result is what I want it to be, than I’d probably have a different feeling. I’m just so excited to give myself a great chance to win this golf tournament.”

Thomas’ dramatics happened on the 18th when he hit his second-shot three wood more than 300 yards on the parfive 667-yard finishing hole. The

ball hit just short of the green and popped forward and rolled 8 feet 1 inch past the hole.

“I obviously needed to nuke it,” Thomas said of his three-wood, which he later called his best of the round. “But I just felt like I could get it up in the air enough to hold the green as soft as they were. And it came out nicely.”

After waiting while playing partner Jonathan Thomas hit his third, fourth, fifth and sixth shots, Thomas stood over his ball for a couple seconds and rolled it in for an eagle.

“I was excited to take the lead,” Thomas said. “I was excited to shoot 63. I had no idea that nine-under was the best ever in an Open, so that was pretty cool once I saw my card. The guys at the scoring table told me that, so I was pretty pumped.”

Thirty-two players had sub-par rounds on Saturday, the most ever for the third round.

“It was definitely conducive for good scores [Saturday],” Thomas said. “When you give us soft greens and not much wind, you know there are going to be some good scores. I was just happy that I was the one to take advantage of it today.”

Harman, who is hoping to become the first lefthander to win the U.S. Open, must have felt overlooked given Thomas’ accomplishment. But, obviously, his 67 with six birdies and one bogey, was a pretty good round.

He had a chance to extend his lead to two but missed a 11-footer for birdie on 18.

“I’m motivated by the fact that I’ve made a plan and I’ve stuck to the plan so far,” Harman said. “Obviously I have no idea what [Sunday] holds, but I’m more motivated by the way I’m striking the ball. It’s the best I’ve struck the ball in a long time. And my short game is pretty good. I’ve been putting it pretty good. So I’m excited about all those things.”

Haman, 30, joined the PGA Tour in 2012 and has won two tournaments, including the Wells Fargo Championship earlier this year.

There are 15 players within seven strokes, so it’s still a wide open tournament.

“It’s going to be weird,” Thomas said about the time he has to pass before teeing off today. “I don’t know what I’m going to feel tonight or if I’m going to sleep well. … But I know I’m going to be nervous, but it’s a good nervous. That’s why I play, to get myself in this position.”

One thing you can count on for certain on today is that the streak of six majors being won by a first-time winner will grow to seven.

The highest former major winners are Sergio Garcia and Louis Oosthuizen at four under, tied for 17th.

Lexi Thompson takes 1-shot lead

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Lexi Thompson shot a 64 on Saturday on the Blythefield layout reduced to a par of 69 because of flooding, giving her a one-stroke lead in the Meijer LPGA Classic.

The fifth hole was played as a 111-yard par 3 instead of a par 5 because of the flooding from overnight rain.

Coming off a playoff loss to Ariya Jutanugarn last week in Canada, Thompson had six birdies and a bogey to reach 15-under 196.

Brooke Henderson, the leader after each of the first two rounds, had a 67 to drop into a tie for second with Lee-Anne Pace (61), Sung Hyun Park (62) and Jenny Shin (63).

Hyo Joo Kim (65) was 12 under, and Lydia Ko (64), Michelle Wie (64), Moriya Jutanugarn (67) and Carlota Ciganda (68) followed at 11 under. Ko dropped to No. 2 in the world Monday after an 85-week run at the top. The top-ranked Ariya Jutanugarn, Moriya Jutanugarn’s younger sister, was 9 under after a 64.

Thompson, who lives in Delray Beach, won the Kingsmill Championship last month in Virginia for her eighth LPGA Tour title after losing the ANA Inspiration in a playoff after being penalized four strokes for a rules violation.