By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

           A rousing chip from a bunker on No. 11 put Russell Henley back up by two strokes, and seemed like it might be the shot to propel the Maconite.

          But Henley lost a little bit of the steady hand he held through two rounds and the front nine Saturday as some of golf’s biggest names started breathing down his neck.

          Henley bogeyed two holes on the back nine, but saved par on a tough 18, and is among three players tied for first after three rounds of the 121st U.S. Open in San Diego.

Friday: Henley stays steady, stays atop U.S. Open leaderboard
Thursday: Russell Henley ends his first round atop the U.S. Open leaderboard

Leaderboard
Column: McIlroy eating well, playing better
DeChambeau goes bogey-free in a major

           Mackenzie Hughes and Louis Oosthuizen got hot and caught Henley late in the round, and Henley bogeyed 15 and had a potentially rough 18 from the rough and then bunker, but came up with a huge par to maintain a share of the lead.

          Eyes will be on Henley, having by far his best major and one of his best tournaments overall in a long time, and Hughes, who has missed five straight cuts and finished no better than a tie for 32nd in last five tournaments he finish. Oosthuizen finished tied second in the PGA Championship last month and in the second in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, plus tied for 26th in the Masters.

          Hughes and Oosthuizen are the final group Sunday at 3:55 p.m., with Henley and Rory McIlroy at 3:44 p.m.

          Henley had two bogeys and three birdies on the front nine, with two bogeys and a birdie on the back nine.

          “I feel good about my game,” Henley said in a post-round interview on the Golf Channel. “Definitely a little nervous up there. I feel like I handled it really well.”

          The third round seemed to be going Henley’s way after he made the turn with a two-stroke lead. A bogey preceded his shot of the tournament, after yet again missing a fairway.

          He lifted a perfect shot from the right greenside bunker that bounced three times and dropped, for a birdie.

          While Henley parred the next three holes, the field was catching up to him, while his co-leader at the start of the day was falling back, and finished the round tied for 21st after a tough 1-over day.

          Hughes – who was in Henley’s group the first two rounds – as well as Rory McIlroy, defending champ Bryson DeChambeau, Matthew Wolff, Scottie Scheffler, and Oosthuizen started climbing the board.

          McIlroy and DeChambeau went to the clubhouse at 3 under, while Henley still had a half-dozen holes to play. Wolff and Oosthuizen were one group ahead.

          Henley went from shotmaker to steady player again after 11, despite not having a great day hitting fairways. His confidence remained strong.

          “I’m just gonna keep doing what I’m doing,” he said in the interview. “I know I can compete. I’ve never been tied for the lead (in) a major on Sunday.”

          A bunker shot on 15 left him a 10-footer for par, and he was just wide and bogeyed.

          The lead fell to one over Hughes, who then teed off on 18 after his four straight pars following an eagle.

          Hughes got out of a bunker nicely, and birdied 18 to tie Henley, who was two inches from a birdie to retake the lead. He settled for par, and the two remained tied.

          Hughes went to the clubhouse 5 under – 3 under for the day - and joined McIlroy and DeChambeau as well as Scheffler (2 under).

          That left Henley, Bland, Wolff, and Oosthuizen on the course.

          Henley again missed a fairway, landing in a right-side bunker on 17, and yet again, he was money, facing a 16-footer for a birdie. He was too soft, and tapped in for another easy short par.

          Another tee shot went to the beach for Henley, right after Oosthuizen eagled par-5 18 to suddenly make it a three-way tie for first at 5 under. His second shot went into a second-cut right-side rough, and third into a bunker. He was left with an 8-footer for par and to stay tied for first, and drained it.

          Hughes had three birdies, two bogeys, and an eagle. Oosthuizen had two bogeys and a birdie on the front nine, but warmed up a little with two and two, plus the huge eagle on 18.

          DeChambeau regrouped well after a rough start, following a 73 with a 69 and 68. McIlroy almost fell out of contention with Friday’s 73, but he cut six strokes off that Saturday.

          IT was clear to Henley the key for Sunday.

          “Just trying to hit fairways, put the ball on the right side of the hole, and committing my shots” said Henley, who hit 43 percent fairways on Saturday. “I feel like every shot’s really hard out there. … I think hitting fairways out here is so important.”

          The storyline to start Saturday was of two surprise contenders teeing off last, Bland and Henley, and the wonderment if they could keep it up.

          Both got off to nice starts, Henley taking the lead from Bland on No. 4, and keeping it until the end of the round.

          Things might’ve been shaky at times, but the battle on 18 may be a confidence boost and momentum builder.

          “Disappointed that I laid up an 8-iron into the rough for the last hole,” Henley said. “But really thankful I made a 5, so, it’ll be nice to sleep on that one.”