The biggest check in the history of the majors awaits the winner of the US Open this Sunday, the third major of the season, at the Pinehurst course in North Carolina. A checkbook of 4.3 million, a bigger prize than that distributed in a Saudi League tournament, is looking for an owner. There are 21.5 million in total to be distributed in the championship, a new increase compared to the previous year in the continuous economic escalation due to the competition between the LIV circuit and the PGA Tour. More than a year has passed since both parties announced an agreement to end the civil war in golf but peace remains unsigned, and the Grand Slam events are the oasis where the big stars coincide. The US Open is another example.
Bryson Dechambeau, LIV man, is the leader with seven strokes under par after a third round of great golf in which he dominated like no one else greens diabolical, hard as stones and that make it very difficult to control the ball. The American has a three-stroke advantage over a group made up of Rory McIlroy, great flag of the PGA Tour, Patrick Cantlay and Matthieu Pavon. With -2 go Matsuyama and Aberg, and with -1, Hatton and Finau. They are the only eight golfers who are under par in the field in this tremendous US Open.
DeChambeau is pursuing his second major after the 2020 US Open, before leaving for the Saudi League. McIlroy has more pending issues, who at 35 years old is looking for his fifth major, the first in 10 years after winning the US Open in 2011, the PGA Championship in 2012, and again the PGA and the British Open in 2014. Since then, the Northern Irishman has 20 rankings in the top 10 of a large, seven of them compressed in 2022 and 2023, when it has been closest to greening its laurels. This year he was 22nd in the Augusta Masters (the only major he is missing) and 12th in the PGA. At the US Open he once again knocks on the doors of glory.
Sergio García walked away from the fight for victory with three bogeys in the first four holes and a round with ups and downs to +1. The man from Castellón qualified at the last minute for this big event through the qualifiers and has been at the top of the classification.
David Puig celebrated his status as an Olympic golfer for the Paris Games with a new round under par. If the Catalan started on Thursday with six over par and the cut was uphill, and therefore the option of going to the Games was receding, on Friday he came back with -2 on the day and this Saturday he scored another blow to the Pinehurst course to be at +3. The 22-year-old from Barcelona collected five birdies and four bogeys, and left some superb impact such as the start on the par three of the 15th hole. Much credit to Puig, a player in the Saudi League, where he shares the Fireballs team with Sergio García, to seek points in minor circuits such as the Asian Tour; Thus he has gradually climbed positions in the world ranking until he surpasses Jorge Campillo and earns the Olympic ticket as Jon Rahm’s companion (the Basque is not competing in this US Open due to a foot infection). LIV tournaments do not count, hence Puig’s pilgrimage with the dream of the Games as a great challenge. Rahm achieved the ticket as number eight in the world.
The one who continued without recovering his usual game was the number one in the world, Scottie Scheffler, who linked his third consecutive round in a major above the par of the field: 71, 74 and 71 strokes in these three days for a total of +6, out of the fight for the title when he landed as the big favorite.
You can follow The USA Print in Facebook and xor sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter.
