Veterans Richard Bland and Russell Henley, surprising co-leaders of the US Golf Open, faced the biggest round of their careers at Torrey Pines (San Diego) on Saturday with several favorites like Jon Rahm following close behind.
The third Grand Slam tournament of the season started its day on Saturday with an unlikely pair in the lead.
England’s Richard Bland is trying to become the oldest Open champion at 48, while American Henley has never been in the top 10 in his 26 ‘Major’ tournament appearances.
Both players, who will begin their third round at 1:35 pm local time (8:35 pm GMT), top the table with a cumulative 137 strokes, five under par.
Both Henley, who has not won a US PGA event in four years, and Bland on Friday afternoon showed no signs of nervousness about their position, even with six Grand Slam winners only five strokes away.
“Intimidating”? I do not know. I’ve never played so well at an US Open, “Henley said.” I feel good about my game. I’ve never been in this position in a ‘Major’.
Bland won his first European tour title at the British Masters just last month, after 478 appearances over 25 years, making him the circuit’s oldest champion.
At number 115 in the world, it is the second time that Bland has made the cut in a major tournament. In his only Open appearance, at Bethpage Black in 2009, he did not make it to the weekend.
Now, the Englishman threatens to become the oldest winner in Open history, surpassing the 45-year mark set by American Hale Irwin in 1990.
– Rahm on the attack –
Just a stroke away from the leaders, the closest pursuers are South African Louis Oosthuizen, 2010 British Open winner, and young American Matthew Wolff, 2020 US Open runner-up.
At 22, Wolff is back in racing after a two-month hiatus to take care of his mental health.
Besides Oosthuizen, the only other Grand Slam-winning golfer who is under par is American Bubba Watson, winner of two Augusta Masters, who shares fifth place with Spaniard Jon Rahm.
The world number three has not played his best golf at Torrey Pines, where he landed after a week of quarantine for his positive for coronavirus at the Memorial Tournament.
However, the Spaniard arrives at the weekend in a good position for the assault on his long-awaited first big trophy, which could even return him to world number one.
Rahm, 26, is at three under par and just two shots off the head.
Still aspiring to the title, the reigning Open champion, American Bryson DeChambeau, and his compatriot Brooks Koepka, winner of the tournament in 2017 and 2018, both within five strokes of the leaders.
Among the first to start the day on Saturday, veteran Phil Mickelson could not cut back and added a bogey in his first five holes.
The Californian, the oldest winner in the history of a Grand Slam with his triumph in the PGA Championship, was +3 in 43rd place.
Barring a historic comeback, Mickelson, 51, will miss the only ‘Major’ missing from his brilliant record.
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