Bryson DeChambeau carded a 1-under 69 Friday at the 124th U.S. Open. It marks his second straight sub-70 score, an impressive feat at treacherous Pinehurst No. 2.
Coincidentally, he posted back-to-back rounds in the 60s to open up the U.S. Open at Winged Foot, where he won in 2020. Will history repeat itself?
Nevertheless, Friday’s second round challenged DeChambeau more so than on day one. He tallied five birdies and four bogeys. However, he ended it on a high note with a birdie on the 18th to shoot under par for the day.
This 1-under round puts him at 4-under for the championship, as he walked off the golf course trailing the leaders by a stroke.
“All in all, I was very happy with how I stayed patient, gave myself good opportunities when they mattered, and I made a lot of clutch putts coming in,” DeChambeau said.
Thursday saw him gain strokes off the tee, but on Friday, he lost a smidge to the field, losing 0.08. He only hit 7-of-14 fairways and 9-of-17 greens.
DeChambeau picked up those strokes on the green, though. In strokes gained putting, he picked up 2.29 on the field, a stark improvement from losing 0.33 on Thursday.
“This golf course is not going to be the same come tomorrow and the next day, and I’m expecting that,” he said.
“Us competitors, players, have to adjust to those conditions accordingly. I’m excited about the game that I have right now. I feel pretty confident and ready to get after it this weekend.”
This week also marks the 25th anniversary of Payne Stewart’s U.S. Open victory in 1999. The golf legend happened to be someone DeChambeau idolized growing up.
Stewart is a big reason why DeChambeau went to SMU and wore the scally cap for a while. On a recruiting trip to SMU, he saw Stewart’s mural at the golf center, which made the decision easy for him.
DeChambeau does not wear the flat cap as much anymore, but this week, he brought it to honor Stewart.
“I wore the hat as a bit of a tribute to Payne and Ben Hogan,” DeChambeau said.
“Growing up, I was a big Ben Hogan fanatic. Knowing what Payne meant to the game of golf, I am also a Payne Stewart fan. He’s meant a lot to me in the game.
“My first [PGA Tour] win was his first win—the John Deere Classic. It was a different tournament back then, but it meant a lot to me to win there. We have the cap on my bag this week as a remembrance of him. The cap is hanging on the side of the bag and it’s with me and makes me think of him every time I’m walking on these grounds.”
Stewart won the first U.S. Open at Pinehurst in 1999 but would tragically die in a plane crash just four months later. The resort has a statue of Stewart’s iconic celebration that fans can see as they enter the main entrance this week.
After 36 holes, DeChambeau is in the hunt and will need a solid weekend to win his second U.S. Open. He has proven to be one of the most consistent players in the field, which will help tremendously as Pinehurst only gets more complicated.
Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, be sure to follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.