It’s officially U.S. Open week, and we can’t wait to watch the best in the world battle at the brutally tough Oakmont Country Club near Pittsburgh. Looking ahead to the third major championship of the season, here are the top five contenders to win the Thursday-Sunday event.
5. Xander Schauffele
Schauffele might not be on the same level as the other names on this list, but he deserves to be included considering his incredible track record at this tournament. In eight U.S. Open starts, Schauffele has six top-seven finishes and has never finished worse than T14. That’s unheard of at any professional golf tournament, let alone the U.S. Open.
Schauffele hasn’t kicked it in gear yet this season, but don’t count him out at Oakmont.
4. Jon Rahm
Speaking of strong U.S. Open performers, Rahm loves it when the conditions get tough. The Spaniard has a win and three other top-12 finishes in his past five trips to the U.S. Open, and Oakmont should fit his eye as a course that demands accuracy off the tee and a creative short game.
Rahm’s worst finish between LIV Golf events and major championships this year is a T14 at the Masters. He was also the only one who challenged Scottie Scheffler on Sunday at the PGA Championship, but he fell apart down the stretch. He’s back for revenge.
3. Rory McIlroy
McIlroy could’ve been No. 1 on this list just a few weeks ago, but his past two starts raised serious red flags. The world No. 2 finished T47 at the PGA Championship despite heading in with a stellar track record at Quail Hollow Club. That was odd, but his performance at the RBC Canadian Open was downright alarming.
McIlroy shot 71-78 at TPC Toronto to miss the cut and beat only five players in the 156-man field. He lost 2.87 true strokes on approach per round, the worst mark of his entire career, and lost true strokes in all four major categories for the first time on the PGA Tour. McIlroy deserves to be among the favorites, but his past two results make it hard to trust him now.
2. Bryson DeChambeau
Boy, what a great setup this is for DeChambeau. Oakmont is a massive golf course that will tip out around 7,400 yards as a par-70, and the fairways are so narrow that longer hitters have an even bigger advantage. DeChambeau can bomb and gouge his way to contention just like he did during his win at the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot Golf Club.
The LIV Golf star is on fire with six straight top-five finishes, including a win in Korea and a runner-up finish at the PGA Championship. It won’t be easy to take down the reigning champ this week.
1. Scottie Scheffler
Scheffler has his swagger back, folks.
After a slow start to the season (by his standards, at least), Scheffler got back in the winner’s circle at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson and hasn’t looked back. He won at TPC Craig Ranch by eight, won the PGA Championship by five, then won the Memorial Tournament by four.
No one on the PGA Tour can touch Scheffler’s “A” game, so they better hope he doesn’t have it at Oakmont. There’s a reason why Scheffler is a +280 favorite (per FanDuel as of Tuesday morning) to win the U.S. Open.
TV broadcast information (all times Eastern):
Thursday, June 12: 6 a.m.-5 p.m, (USA Network), 5-8 p.m. (Peacock)
Friday, June 13: 6:30 a.m.-1 p.m.; 7-8 p.m. (Peacock), 1-7 p.m. ET (NBC)
Saturday, June 14: 10 a.m.-noon (USA Network), noon-8 p.m. (NBC)
Sunday, June 15: 9 a.m.-noon (USA Network), noon-7 p.m. (NBC)
