This post compares Round 3 of the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont with my replay of it using Steel City (par 70). Previous posts have covered the replay setup and the results for Rounds 1 and 2.
Actual Results for Round 3
Friday narrowed the field. Saturday reshuffled it.
Moving Day at most championships is defined by charges up the leaderboard. At Oakmont, it was defined just as much by the players who could not hold their ground. New contenders emerged, familiar names slipped away, and only a handful of players managed to improve their position. Once again, Oakmont rewarded patience more than aggression.
Sam Burns entered Saturday with a one-shot lead and did exactly what a leader needed to do. His one-under 69 did not create separation, but it preserved his advantage. At four under par, Burns remained the only player better than three under through 54 holes.
Adam Scott and Carlos Ortiz produced Saturday’s best rounds with matching three-under 67s, but their accomplishments carried very different significance. Scott’s round vaulted the 44-year-old Australian into a share of second place, just one stroke behind Burns entering the final round. After opening with consecutive 70s, he had quietly played his way into the final pairing through consistency rather than spectacular golf.
Ortiz made the day’s biggest move. Beginning the round outside the top ten after scores of 71 and 72, he climbed to fifth place at even par. While still four shots behind Burns, his 67 transformed him from an afterthought into a legitimate contender.
The low rounds also revealed something about Oakmont. On a course where Saturday often produces dramatic charges, the best score of the day was only three under par. No one overwhelmed the course. Instead, steady, mistake-free golf proved enough to reshape the leaderboard.
J.J. Spaun continued his remarkably steady play with a second consecutive 69, moving into a share of second place. After leading following Thursday’s opening round, surrendering the lead on Friday, and refusing to go away on Saturday, Spaun positioned himself just one shot behind Burns entering the final round.
Viktor Hovland remained one of the championship’s steadiest performers. His even-par 70 left him alone in fourth at one under par. While others lurched forward and backward, Hovland quietly posted his third consecutive solid round and remained firmly in contention through discipline rather than brilliance.
Several players also played their way into Sunday’s conversation. Tyrrell Hatton climbed into a tie for sixth with a two-under 68, while Robert MacIntyre and Cameron Young both reached the top ten after rounds of 69. None made a spectacular charge, but each earned the opportunity to begin the final round within striking distance.
Just as revealing was who disappeared from the first page of the leaderboard. Ben Griffin fell from a share of fourth after 36 holes to outside the top ten following a disappointing 74. Victor Perez slipped after a 73, while Brooks Koepka, Russell Henley, Thomas Detry, and Si Woo Kim all faded from contention. Thriston Lawrence, Spaun’s closest challenger after the opening round, managed only to hold position with an even-par 70 and continued drifting further from the lead.
By Saturday evening, Oakmont had once again rewritten the championship story. Burns still led, but the list of challengers looked very different than it had just 24 hours earlier. The course had not produced a Sunday runaway. Instead, it assembled a final group of proven veterans, emerging contenders, and major champions separated by only a handful of shots. Moving Day had done exactly what it was supposed to do. It left the championship waiting to be decided.
The top ten leaderboard for the actual tournament is provided below:
Replay Results for Round 3
Moving Day produced a very different story at Steel City. While Oakmont reshuffled its leaderboard and brought several new contenders into Sunday’s final round, the replay further strengthened Scottie Scheffler’s grip on the championship. Rather than compressing the field, Saturday rewarded the players who had already established themselves near the top.
The replay scoring average remained remarkably consistent for a third consecutive round at 71.9. Steel City continued to demand precision, but unlike Oakmont it never forced the leaders backward. Scheffler added another composed round of 68 to reach 11 under par, extending his advantage to six strokes over Collin Morikawa and seven over Jordan Spieth.
Morikawa continued his steady play with a 69 to hold second place at five under, while Spieth matched him with another 69 to finish the day alone in third at four under. Adam Scott duplicated his Moving Day performance from the actual championship with a three-under 67, tying J.T. Poston for the low round of the day. The effort lifted Scott (+1) into a five-way tie for twelfth, but even the day’s best score barely dented Scheffler’s commanding lead. Meanwhile, Poston (+8) finished the round in a four-way tie for 41st.
Several of Friday’s contenders moved in the opposite direction. Cameron Young (+4) followed his brilliant second-round 64 with a disappointing 78, tumbling from a share of second to a tie for twenty-first. Bryson DeChambeau slipped back with a 72 to fall to even par, while J.J. Spaun and Robert MacIntyre remained in the top ten at even par but never mounted a serious challenge. Steel City produced movement throughout the leaderboard, but not where it mattered most.
By Saturday evening the contrast between Oakmont and Steel City had become unmistakable. Oakmont tightened the championship entering Sunday, leaving several players within realistic striking distance. Steel City did the opposite. It continued to reward exceptional golf, allowing Scheffler to build a commanding seven-shot cushion over third place while the rest of the field competed largely for second.
The Top Ten leaderboard for Round 3 of the replay is provided below:
R3 Replay Highlights and Lowlights
Round 3 at Steel City produced another collection of memorable moments that reflected the balance between reward and punishment. Andrew Novak eagled twice, holing out on both the 10th and 12th holes. Si Woo Kim and Jason Day also eagled the 12th, while Brian Harman closed his round with a 49-foot putt on the 18th. Ryan Gerard provided the shot of the day, burying a remarkable 79-foot putt on the 4th hole.
The other side of the story was just as familiar. Tyrrell Hatton four-putted the 13th from only 24 feet. Jason Day opened his round with a four-putt from 47 feet on the 1st green, and Wyndham Clark finished with a four-putt from 50 feet on the 18th. Once again, Steel City rewarded bold play but extracted a heavy price for poor position on the greens.
Round 3 by the numbers:
- Sungjae Im hit 12 of 14 fairways. (Avg. = 7.3)
- Laurie Canter hit the fewest fairways with 4 of 14.
- Daniel Berger hit 15 of 18 greens in regulation. (Avg. = 11.7)
- Sam Burns and Sungjae Im hit the fewest greens with 8.
- Jon Rahm led all players in average driving distance on the designated driving holes (nos. 7 and 15) at 345 yards. (Avg. = 300.2)
- Joaquín Niemann and Rory McIlroy led all players in average driving distance on all drives at 321 yards. (Avg. = 291.6)
- Laurie Canter had the longest drive at 390 yards.
- Ryan Gerard sank the longest putt at 79 feet.
- Ryan Gerard led all players with 152.5 feet of putts made. (Avg. = 76.9)
- Sam Burns took the fewest putts with 26. (Avg. = 31.6)
- Brian Campbell and Rasmus Højgaard took the most putts with 36.
The stage is now set for the final round. At Oakmont, Sam Burns carried a one-shot lead over Adam Scott and J.J. Spaun into Sunday, with six players within seven shots and every expectation that the championship remained undecided. At Steel City, Scottie Scheffler enters the final round with a commanding six-shot advantage over Collin Morikawa and seven over Jordan Spieth.
Oakmont spent three days identifying who could survive. Steel City has spent three days identifying who has played the best. Sunday will determine whether those two stories arrive at the same destination or finish in dramatically different ways.
Complete statistical results for Round 3 of the replay can be viewed by clicking in the upper righthand corner of the PDF below: