Wyndham Clark heads into Saturday’s U.S. Open Round 3 at Shinnecock Hills after posting 7-under through two rounds. Wind is expected to stay punishing, with gusts continuing to shape play as a crowded chase group sits just three strokes back.
The flags at Shinnecock Hills have barely had time to settle, and by the time Saturday’s Round 3 arrives, the wind won’t be finished with the field.
Through the first two days of the 2026 U.S. Open. Wyndham Clark—at 7-under par heading into the weekend—has built a four-stroke cushion with a strong Round 1 and a solid Round 2. The 32-year-old Colorado native is also carrying a personal storyline into the weekend: he said he’s “gotten a lot of grief since last year. ” adding that the criticism “rightfully” came. even as he insisted. “The thing that’s unfortunate is that’s not who I am. what happened last year.”.
Clark won the 2023 U.S. Open in Los Angeles, and at Shinnecock Hills he has the best 36-hole score at a U.S. Open. Still, the forecast suggests the opening act for Round 3 will be anything but calm. The forecast calls for plenty of sunshine. but Saturday’s outlook includes “gusty winds” that are expected to make an impact.
Four players are tied for second at 3-under par heading into Saturday’s third round: Matt Fitzpatrick. Sam Stevens. Tom Kim. and two-time major winner Xander Schauffele. The leaderboard through the second round also shows Collin Morikawa at 2-under par. while Justin Thomas. Harry Higgs. and Sam Burns sit at 1-under.
Some recent U.S. Open champions won’t be part of the weekend weather. Brooks Koepka (2017 and 2018), Jon Rahm (2021), Bryson DeChambeau (2024), and J.J. Spaun (2025) were sent home early after missing the +4 cut.
The tournament is scheduled to keep going under shifting conditions. The time for the start of the third round for the U.S. Open will be announced at the conclusion of Friday’s second round.
The wind is the thread tying the whole day together: Clark is leading with a 7-under start. the closest group at 3-under is waiting for openings. and the players who survived the +4 cut will have to manage gusts that are expected to persist through Saturday. The third round begins with sunshine on the radar—but no one at Shinnecock Hills is treating that as relief.
Saturday’s third-round pairings start with tee times beginning at 9:00 a.m. Eastern, according to the published schedule. Dylan Wu and Jacob Bridgeman are set for 9:00 a.m., followed by Chris Gotterup and Eric Lee at 9:11 a.m. (Lee listed as an alternate). At 9:22 a.m., Peter Uihlein tees off with Caleb Surratt. Marek Fleming and Robert MacIntyre follow at 9:33 a.m. (Fleming listed as an alternate). The schedule continues with Nico Echavarria and Hideki Matsuyama at 9:44 a.m. Bud Cauley and Neal Shipley at 9:55 a.m. and Laurie Canter with Michael Kim at 10:06 a.m.
Tee times continue through the midday window: Jackson Koivun and Miles Russell at 10:17 a.m. (Koivun listed as an alternate). Patrick Rodgers and Emiliano Grillo at 10:33 a.m. and James Nicholas and Angel Hidalgo at 10:44 a.m. (Nicholas listed as an alternate). Jordan Spieth and Joaquin Niemann tee off at 10:55 a.m. Russell Henley and Dustin Johnson follow at 11:06 a.m., then Ryan Fox and Michael Brennan at 11:17 a.m.
After that comes a tight middle of the round: Pierceson Coody and Max Greyserman at 11:28 a.m.; Kurt Kitayama and Tyrrell Hatton at 11:39 a.m.; Cameron Young and Sungjae Im at 11:50 a.m.; and Adrien Dumont de Chassart with Spencer Tibbits at 12:06 p.m. J.T. Poston and Ben Griffin are at 12:17 p.m. Andrew Putnam and John Parry at 12:28 p.m. and Jackson Van Paris with Ben James at 12:39 p.m.
The afternoon starts at 12:50 p.m. with Tommy Fleetwood and Ludvig Aberg. Keegan Bradley and Johnny Keefer are at 1:01 p.m. Ben Kohles and Justin Rose at 1:12 p.m. and Corey Conners with Aaron Rai at 1:28 p.m. Zac Blair and Max McGreevy are set for 1:39 p.m., then Niklas Norgaard and Alex Fitzpatrick at 1:50 p.m. Scottie Scheffler and Brian Harman are among the featured pairings at 2:01 p.m. with Maverick McNealy and Rory McIlroy at 2:12 p.m.
Later slots include Keith Mitchell and Akshay Bhatia at 2:23 p.m. Gary Woodland and Ryo Hisatsune at 2:34 p.m. and Ryder Cowan with William Mouw at 2:50 p.m. (Cowan listed as an alternate). Sahith Theegala and Sam Burns are scheduled for 3:01 p.m. while Harry Higgs and Justin Thomas are at 3:12 p.m. and Collin Morikawa and Tom Kim at 3:23 p.m.
The day’s closing featured groups start with Sam Stevens and Xander Schauffele at 3:34 p.m., and Matt Fitzpatrick paired with Wyndham Clark at 3:45 p.m.
For viewers, the 2026 U.S. Open is set to be broadcast nationally on NBC, USA Network and NBCSN. Live streaming coverage is available on Peacock, Fubo, USOpen.com and the U.S. Open app.
The tournament’s own weekend weather hints that conditions may ease only slightly. Saturday. June 20 (Round 3) is listed as stiff winds with plenty of sunshine. with “gusty winds” continuing to pose problems for golfers. Sunday, June 21 (Round 4) is forecast as times of clouds and sunshine, noted as “nice for Father’s Day activities.”.
The U.S. Open began June 18 at Shinnecock Hills. AccuWeather has posted its 10-day forecast for the course area in New York, with the reminder that thunderstorms are always a possibility during the summer.
U.S. Open 2026 Wyndham Clark Shinnecock Hills Round 3 tee times leaderboard NBC Peacock Fubo wind forecast Matt Fitzpatrick Xander Schauffele
Wind at Shinnecock again… just cancel it lol.
I don’t even watch golf but “wind won’t be finished with the field” sounds brutal. If Clark is leading at 7-under then why do I feel like he’s gonna get screwed by the weather.
They said Clark got “grief since last year” but then it says criticism came rightfully? So like… is he getting booed or is this some scandal? Also gusts shaping play doesn’t mean the flags can’t settle right? Flags are flags.
It’s wild Brooks Koepka and Rahm missed the cut like that. I thought being a past champ basically guarantees you play the weekend? And Xander Schauffele at 3-under sounds fine but wind will “shape play” which sounds like they’re gonna move the goalposts or something. Anyway if it’s that gusty maybe they should start Round 3 later when it calms down.