Advertisement

The Latest: Matsuyama still in contention at U.S. Open

MAMARONECK, N.Y. (AP) — The Latest from the third round of the U.S. Open, golf's second major of the year (all times local):

___

Hideki Matsuyama had a wild ride in his third round, yet still finds himself in contention at the U.S. Open.

Matsuyama did not have a par on his card through his first seven holes at Winged Foot and had a double bogey on the par-4 seventh that included a shank out of the thick rough.

He still managed to get around in even-par 70 to remain even in the tournament, just four shots behind leader Matthew Wolff when he completed the round.

___

5:17 p.m.

Danny Lee has withdrawn from the U.S. Open after the third round due to a wrist injury.

Lee completed an 8-over 78 at Winged Foot, but decided after the round he couldn't continue.

The Kiwi with one career PGA Tour victory opened with a solid 70, but shot 75 in the second round.

___

4:50 p.m.

Rory McIlroy has made a move up the U.S. Open leaderboard in his bid to end a streak of 20 straight majors without a win.

The four-time major champion winner played a steady third round at Winged Foot, shooting a 2-under 68 with three birdies and a bogey.

McIlroy moved to 1 over for the tournament, six back of co-leaders Matthew Wolff and Patrick Reed when he walked off the 18th green. McIlroy hasn't won a major since the 2014 PGA Championship.

Wolff made one of the biggest moves of the day, posting five birdies with no bogeys to shoot 30 on the front nine. Reed, the overnight leader, traded birdies and bogeys early in his round and was even through his first 10 holes.

___

3:20 p.m.

Paul Casey had the second score under par Saturday at Winged Foot, which told only half the story. He was 5 over through seven holes and wanted to hide. He shot 30 on the back nine for a 69 in the U.S. Open.

“In all honesty, I kind of wanted to walk in after the first five, six, seven holes,” Casey said. “It was ugly.”

But he made birdie on the 11th, the start of four in a row. And he finished with a 7-foot birdie on the 18th hole. It was such a good back nine that Casey started recounting his score because he thought it might have been a 29.

“When they flash up 69, it's not the full picture, is it?” he said. “It was a stressful day, but I'm happy with what I shot.”

It took him 5 over. That likely will leave him too far behind.

Matthew Wolff has four birdies in seven holes and was momentarily tied for the lead with Patrick Reed. Hideki Matsuyama also had four birdies on the front nine, along with three bogeys.

___

2:05 p.m.

Alex Noren showed the leaders that low scores can be had at Winged Foot in the third round of the U.S. Open.

Teeing off early, the Swedish golfer shot a 3-under 67 to reach 3 over for the tournament.

Noren nearly drove the green at the 332-yard sixth hole for a birdie and had three more birdies to offset a bogey on No. 8. He shot 72-74 the first two rounds and is seven shots behind leader Patrick Reed.

___

12:45 p.m.

The leaders at the U.S. Open are still two hours away from teeing off and already have a pretty good idea of what to expect at Winged Foot if they're watching on TV.

Alex Noren is the only player through nine holes who is under par. Temperatures were in the upper 40s when the third round began and are only expected to nudge past 60 degrees Fahrenheit (15 Celsius). The wind isn't strong, but it's enough. The scores? Typical for a U.S. Open at Winged Foot.

Troy Merritt was wrapping up his third round with one birdie on his card and plenty of bogeys or worse.

Patrick Cantlay isn't faring much better. And if a tough course wasn't enough, he might have received the worst break of the week. Cantlay was playing a lofted pitch to the 15th when it struck the pin, rolled down the slope and kept going. He had to walk backward 20 yards to play his next shot. He did well to make bogey.

Patrick Reed was leading at 4 under by one shot over Bryson DeChambeau. They were among six players still under par. That number was likely to shrink.