Burns into US Open lead as brutal Oakmont sees 2024 winner DeChambeau make an exit
Five-time PGA Tour winner Sam Burns replaced fellow-American J.J. Spaun atop the 125th US Open leaderboard at Oakmont on Friday as defending champion Bryson DeChambeau failed to make the 36-hole cut.
- Jun 15, 2025,
- Updated Jun 15, 2025 3:02 PM IST
The Oakmont Country Club continued to claim high-profile scalps at the 125th US Open with its narrow fairways, thick rough and glassy greens, rudely ejecting defending champion Bryson DeChambeau who failed to make the 36-hole cut on Friday.
Joining him on the sidelines as US golfer Sam Burns replaced compatriot JJ Spaun atop the leaderboard were past US Open winners Justin Rose, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Dustin Johnson, as well as four of the top 10 players in the world, including Justin Thomas, Ludvig Aberg, and Sepp Straka.
Also sidelined in the cut that fell at 7 over par 147 were British Open winners Cameron Smith and Shane Lowry, as well as six-time runner-up Phil Mickelson, in what will probably be his last appearance at America’s national Open.
DeChambeau, out to be the first consecutive winner of the US Open after Brooks Koepka (2017, 2018), returned a 7 over-par 77 on Friday to total 10 over 150, three strokes out the cut line, while Mickelson was 8 over `148 for the week on the testing par-70 Pennsylvania course.
But it was Burns (65) who held centre stage on Friday with a display that included six birdies against one dropped shot. A five-time PGA Tour winner, Burns (3 under 137) led Spaun by one shot with Norway’s Viktor Hovland (68) third on 1 under 139. They were the only three players under par after 36 holes.
“I think mentally there's no just kind of gimme hole. There's no hole where you can get up there and just hit it and not really pay attention to what you're trying to do,” Burns said later. “I think it requires a lot of focus on every shot, and even when you're in the rough and you're trying to get it back in the fairway, every shot is difficult. So, really you're very focused and putting a lot into every shot mentally, and I think over time that's just pretty taxing.”
Spaun, who was repeatedly held up during his round and how he handled the delay, said, “We didn't wait a ton throughout the day until we got to tee 12 and there's two groups on the tee and it's a par 5 and you're standing up there and you've already been three and a half hours in and you're waiting about 15, 20 minutes just to hit your tee shot, then you've got to hit a tough tee shot. I think the key is just to kind of embrace it, accept it and stay fueled as far as nutrition and eating and drinking enough water to stay hydrated. But honestly, we play pretty slow on Tour anyway, so what's another 40 minutes to go around Oakmont.”
For Hovland, it was all about managing the round. “Super impressive. I was 4 under at one point, and it does feel like, man, if you're just executing and you're getting some nice bounces and you're making some putts, you can definitely shoot a low score.
“But you're just not very far off before you're making a bogey or a double bogey, and that can happen multiple holes in a row. It just feels like you have to play absolutely perfect and have some good breaks going your way, as well. But it's definitely doable.”
One player grabbing plenty of eyeballs was veteran Aussie Adam Scott, playing his 96th consecutive major championship and looking comfortable in the two-five. “I'd be pretty proud of winning this thing on the weekend,” he said after his round.
“Right now, that's really what I'm here to do, and I feel like there's probably not been many signs to anyone else but me the last month or six weeks that my game is looking better. But I definitely feel more confident than I have been this year.
“This is what I've been working towards. I was kind of in the mix late at the PGA, and now kind of putting myself in this one for the weekend. It's a long way to go, but I feel like my game is in good enough shape to do this.”
The Oakmont Country Club continued to claim high-profile scalps at the 125th US Open with its narrow fairways, thick rough and glassy greens, rudely ejecting defending champion Bryson DeChambeau who failed to make the 36-hole cut on Friday.
Joining him on the sidelines as US golfer Sam Burns replaced compatriot JJ Spaun atop the leaderboard were past US Open winners Justin Rose, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Dustin Johnson, as well as four of the top 10 players in the world, including Justin Thomas, Ludvig Aberg, and Sepp Straka.
Also sidelined in the cut that fell at 7 over par 147 were British Open winners Cameron Smith and Shane Lowry, as well as six-time runner-up Phil Mickelson, in what will probably be his last appearance at America’s national Open.
DeChambeau, out to be the first consecutive winner of the US Open after Brooks Koepka (2017, 2018), returned a 7 over-par 77 on Friday to total 10 over 150, three strokes out the cut line, while Mickelson was 8 over `148 for the week on the testing par-70 Pennsylvania course.
But it was Burns (65) who held centre stage on Friday with a display that included six birdies against one dropped shot. A five-time PGA Tour winner, Burns (3 under 137) led Spaun by one shot with Norway’s Viktor Hovland (68) third on 1 under 139. They were the only three players under par after 36 holes.
“I think mentally there's no just kind of gimme hole. There's no hole where you can get up there and just hit it and not really pay attention to what you're trying to do,” Burns said later. “I think it requires a lot of focus on every shot, and even when you're in the rough and you're trying to get it back in the fairway, every shot is difficult. So, really you're very focused and putting a lot into every shot mentally, and I think over time that's just pretty taxing.”
Spaun, who was repeatedly held up during his round and how he handled the delay, said, “We didn't wait a ton throughout the day until we got to tee 12 and there's two groups on the tee and it's a par 5 and you're standing up there and you've already been three and a half hours in and you're waiting about 15, 20 minutes just to hit your tee shot, then you've got to hit a tough tee shot. I think the key is just to kind of embrace it, accept it and stay fueled as far as nutrition and eating and drinking enough water to stay hydrated. But honestly, we play pretty slow on Tour anyway, so what's another 40 minutes to go around Oakmont.”
For Hovland, it was all about managing the round. “Super impressive. I was 4 under at one point, and it does feel like, man, if you're just executing and you're getting some nice bounces and you're making some putts, you can definitely shoot a low score.
“But you're just not very far off before you're making a bogey or a double bogey, and that can happen multiple holes in a row. It just feels like you have to play absolutely perfect and have some good breaks going your way, as well. But it's definitely doable.”
One player grabbing plenty of eyeballs was veteran Aussie Adam Scott, playing his 96th consecutive major championship and looking comfortable in the two-five. “I'd be pretty proud of winning this thing on the weekend,” he said after his round.
“Right now, that's really what I'm here to do, and I feel like there's probably not been many signs to anyone else but me the last month or six weeks that my game is looking better. But I definitely feel more confident than I have been this year.
“This is what I've been working towards. I was kind of in the mix late at the PGA, and now kind of putting myself in this one for the weekend. It's a long way to go, but I feel like my game is in good enough shape to do this.”