SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. (AP) The weekend is when it counts.

Only three amateurs at the U.S. Open advanced from the first two rounds; 17 were sent packing. Will Grimmer cleared the 8-over-par cut by three strokes. Luis Gagne and Matt Parziale advanced by one.

”It was a completely different ballgame than the last two days,” Grimmer said of Saturday’s round. ”Guys were chanting out all sorts of fun stuff, which was great. It was a new experience for me.”

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This is Grimmer’s second U.S. Open. The Ohio State senior-to-be played in 2014 as a 17-year-old but didn’t make the cut. He sits at 13 over heading into Sunday.

Parziale, a firefighter from Brockton, Massachusetts, leads the amateurs at 11 over. Gagne, a soon-to-be senior at LSU, is 12 over.

”Bottom line is we’re in our own little tournament within a tournament,” Grimmer said, ”and I’m two strokes away from where I need to be.”

Whoever wins the low-amateur race receives a medal and is honored at the closing ce..

SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. (AP) Shinnecock Hills is one of the toughest challenges in golf. The last thing it needs is being turned into an unfair layout.

Yet the USGA admitted the course got out of hand Saturday in the third round of the U.S. Open, and apologized for it.

Only three players shot under par: co-leaders Daniel Berger and Tony Finau with 66s, and Kiradech Aphibarnrat with a 68. Two others were at even par, Gary Woodland and Brian Gay.

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Meanwhile, there were eight rounds of 80 or higher, including Rickie Fowler with an 84 and Phil Mickelson at 81. The average score was 75.33 on the par-70 course, but the afternoon rounds among the leaders skewed much higher.

”It was a tale of two golf courses, and no doubt, we would admit, well-executed shots were not only not regarded, but were punished,” said Mike Davis, the chief executive of the USGA and the man in charge of course setup. ”We would say that it was a very tough test, and really too tough this after..

SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. (AP) The key hole in the third round of the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills.

Hole: 13

Par: 4

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Yardage: 366

Average: 4.52

Rank: T3

Key fact: Phil Mickelson intentionally hit his ball while it was still going past the hole, taking a 2-stroke penalty for a 10. Co-leader Daniel Berger made birdie on the hole, while the other co-leaders all made par.

Dustin Johnson blew a 4-stroke lead but remains tied atop the leaderboard heading into Saturday. However, Phil Mickelson's 10 on the 13th hole was the story. Sponsored by #Lexus.

SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — The 2018 U.S. Open is so difficult that players are still making bogeys after their rounds are over.
RELATED: Phil Mickelson's crazy penalty affects U.S. Open prop bet
Following a four-over-par 74, Henrik Stenson stopped by the Sky Sports set to do an interview with Sarah Stirk — but he didn't realize the cameras were rolling. In mentioning that he had just dropped an F-bomb somewhere else, Stenson dropped another F-bomb before being told he was on live TV. And his reaction was priceless:
https://twitter.com/GolfClubWanker/status/1008130580574277632
“Please don't swear,” Stirk said. “We are live on air, Henrik.”
You couldn't have told him that 10 seconds earlier? Poor guy. Playing a fast-and-firm burnt-to-a-crisp Shinnecock Hills was tough enough.
In any event, Stenson still has a great chance to capture a second major title on Sunday when he'll start the final round just two shots off the lead. And if he does, he'll probably be just ..

Dustin Johnson's 4 stroke lead disappeared quickly on Saturday after Johnson carded 5 bogeys on the front.

Brooks Koepka sits down with Shane O'Donoghue after shooting 2 over on Saturday to move into a tie for 2nd place.

SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. (AP) Phil Mickelson turned 48 on Saturday, an occasion marked by fans singing ”Happy Birthday” at every turn.

Unfortunately he ruined it by acting like a 10-year-old at the U.S. Open.

And, much like a 10-year-old, he refused to admit he was wrong.

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”If somebody’s offended by that I apologize,” Mickelson said after running after his golf ball on the 13th green at Shinnecock Hills and hitting it while it was still moving. ”But toughen up, this was not meant that way.”

Actually it was, because what happened on the slippery 13th green at Shinnecock wasn’t just a case of a golfer losing his head momentarily in anger. That, at least, might have been excusable, even for a player in his 27th Open who clearly knows better.

No, this was Mickelson’s attempt to be the smartest guy in golf once again. This was his way to bend the rules and take a shot at the USGA at the same time for making the green so difficult.

And Mickelson should know there’s..

Within minutes of Phil Mickelson hitting his moving golf ball at the U.S. Open, his tour-pro peers started wondering if he should be DQ'd

Dustin Johnson hit a monster drive on the 14th hole during Round 3 of the 118th U.S. Open. Sponsored by #Lexus