PINEHURST, N.C. — Bryson DeChambeau is marching like Paul Bunyan through the hallowed grounds of Pinehurst No. 2.
Wherever the 30-year-old DeChambeau goes, people salute him with open-mouthed, deep-throated cheers.
DeChambeau is practicing at the site of the 124th U.S. Open.
He is three strokes behind going into Sunday’s final round, seeking his second career U.S. Open title.
The 2020 U.S. Open champion at Winged Foot leads Rory McIlroy, Patrick Cantlay and Mathieu Pavon by three strokes.
Hideki Matsuyama and Ludvig Aberg, who led the tournament at 5 under and played alongside DeChambeau in the final round, are both still undefeated at 2 under.
Tyrrell Hatton and Tony Finau are both at 1 under and have a slim chance to win Sunday’s tournament.
But the day, and the tournament, was about DeChambeau’s complete transformation from misunderstood quirky player to fan favorite.
His shot-making is as breathtaking as his swagger.
At this point, no one in the game, or in the sport, is having more fun than DeChambeau.
After hitting his tee shot well left of the fairway and into a dusty field, DeChambeau pumped his fist as he walked off the 18th hole toward the packed stands cheering him on.
Two holes earlier, DeChambeau had led by four strokes after playing the 16th hole, but a double bogey cut that lead in half.
He followed that miss with a birdie on the par-3 17th hole to extend his lead to three strokes and celebrate with jubilation.
Last month, DeChambeau was undoubtedly the most popular player at Valhalla, drawing the most rapturous cheers and electrifying the crowd with some jaw-dropping shots.
He finished at 20 under par, one stroke behind winner Xander Schauffele.
Now, DeChambeau will wake up Sunday morning with the U.S. Open trophy in his hands.
It was a beautiful and intense day.
Even though it was only Saturday, Sunday felt like a major championship.
The third round had a real championship round feel to it.
Temperatures were hovering in the 90s, the sun was scorching and the greens were baking.
And pressure.
The pressure on the back nine was palpable.
“It was a really tough U.S. Open Saturday,” McIlroy said. “You expect that. The course is rough. The pin positions are pretty tricky in some places.”
“I love the challenge that Pinehurst presents. You have to be focused and concentrated on every shot, which is how the U.S. Open should be. Of course, it’s great to be in the running to win. No matter what happens, I feel like I have a great chance tomorrow, two shots, three shots, four shots.”
“I’m open to the questions that the golf course throws at you. I think there are some holes where you have to be aggressive. There are some holes where you have to be conservative. There are some places where you can get close with a wedge. There are some places where you have to avoid the holes.”
“It tests your chipping. It tests your putting. It definitely tests your mental toughness more than any other golf tournament.”
As DeChambeau continued to power down the sandy highway at Pinehurst, several of his closest competitors were skidding after being involved in a multi-crash.
Finau was in contention for the win until he made a triple bogey on the 13th hole, which caused several players to fall off and ruined his chances of winning. Finau was four under par at the time of his triple bogey on the 13th hole, two strokes behind DeChambeau.
A few minutes later, when DeChambeau and Aberg reached the 13th hole, it was DeChambeau who hit a beautiful approach shot from a dusty wilderness on the right side of the fairway at a difficult angle and deep into the dangerous green.
And while DeChambeau was patiently trying to make a birdie putt, Aberg was playing ping-pong on the hole.
His approach shot rolled down the hill after a fail front prevented him from accessing the green.
His next shot went over the back of the green and into a bunker.
His bunker shot rolled off the green and landed short of the green, which is where this whole mess began.
After another chip and two putts, Aberg finished in seven, just like Finau, and his hopes of winning were likely doomed.
He started the hole two strokes behind DeChambeau and finished the hole five strokes behind.
