PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — We got a taste of it on the back nine Saturday at Pebble Beach. The trophy wasn’t on the line, not the way it will be on Sunday when the final 18 holes are played. But late in the third round, the 119th U.S. Open came alive and offered a glimpse of the theater ahead.
We saw Gary Woodland cling to his lead with miraculous par saves at the par-3 12th and par-4 14th, where it looked like he was certain to make bogey. We saw Justin Rose answer those two dramatic pars saves with birdies that stole Woodland’s thunder and ultimately cut into his lead.
We saw Brooks Koepka keep his chances for a three-peat alive with a bogey-free round that included a crazy par save from the fringe at the 15th green. And perhaps in the most interesting development of all, we saw Pebble Beach start to show its teeth and put the best players on notice that Sunday will be no day at the beach.
Woodland will take a one-shot lead over Rose into Sunday’s final round, but the pick here to win is Koepka because no one has won three straight U.S. Opens in 114 years, and why not witness history being made?
Koepka will start four shots back after a 3-under 68 on Saturday. He is 7-under for the tournament and looking to win his fifth major in his last nine starts.
“Going into [Sunday] I have to stay patient and keep doing what I’m doing,” Koepka said. “If you’re within three strokes on the back nine anything can happen.”
Somewhere up there Willie Anderson will be watching. The Scottish immigrant won four U.S. Opens, including three straight beginning in 1903. Koepka, a winner at Erin Hills in 2017 and Shinnecock Hills last year, will get his chance to match Anderson, and it sounds like he can’t wait.
“I just enjoy the pressure,” Koepka said. “I enjoy hitting good golf shots when the pressure is on.”
There will be plenty of pressure looming on Sunday, which is why this is shaping up to be one of the most memorable U.S. Opens in recent years. For starters, it’s the first in a while that won’t be marred by a ruined green and unplayable conditions. It’s all about the golf.
The scores might be lower than the USGA would like. But we’ve arrived at the final round with six players within five shots of Woodland, who is 11-under.
Koepka, who came from five shots back to win at Shinnecock last year, is the sixth player trying to match Anderson’s three-peat. Curtis Strange failed to accomplish the feat in 1990, Ben Hogan in 1952, Ralph Guldahl in 1939, Bobby Jones in 1931 and John McDermott in 1913.
None of them could have been more confident than Koepka, who must feel like he can overcome anything after saving par at the par-4 15th. Following a perfect drive, he hit his only poor shot of the day, sailing his second shot over the green and into the deep rough.
His third shot out of the clumpy grass went across the green and onto the fringe some 60-feet from the hole. Koepka was hoping to settle for bogey, but rolled a perfect putt across the green that died in the hole.
“I don’t know how it went in,” Koepka said. “It looked good the whole way, and I’m glad it snuck in there for par.”
Koepka will need to make his share of clutch putts on Sunday if he’s going to three-peat. Woodland, seeking his first major, has a tenuous one-stroke lead after Rose made birdie on the 18th hole. Also in the hunt are major winners Louis Oosthuizen (7-under) and Rory McIlroy (6-under).
“I don’t need to go out and chase,” Koepka said, adding, “I feel like if I can just make a few putts, I feel like I could be right there.”
Koepka has said majors are sometimes the easiest tournaments win. Nothing will come easy on Sunday at Pebble Beach with the U.S. Open championship and 114 years of history at stake.