FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Saturday, September 19th, 2020
U.S. OPEN NOTABLE QUOTES – THIRD ROUND
NBC Sports Notable Quotes
120th U.S. Open – Third Round
Winged Foot Golf Club (West Course), Mamaroneck, N.Y.
Saturday, September 19
**Sunday’s final round coverage of the 120th U.S. Open begins at 8 a.m. ET exclusively on Peacock, continues at 10 a.m. ET on GOLF Channel, and shifts to NBC at noon ET**
This week, NBCUniversal presents the most-ever live U.S. Open coverage by one media group exclusively across NBC, GOLF Channel, and Peacock, NBCUniversal’s new streaming service. In addition, GOLF Channel’s Golf Central Live From the U.S. Open provides comprehensive wraparound news coverage on-site at Winged Foot Golf Club, with interviews, highlights and analysis throughout the week.
120th U.S. Open – Third Round Leaderboard
| Matthew Wolff | -5 |
| Bryson DeChambeau | -3 |
| Louis Oosthuizen | -1 |
| Xander Schauffele | E |
| Hideki Matsuyama | E |
| Harris English | E |
| Rory McIlroy | +1 |
On Phenomenon of Unprecedented Power in Golf
Paul Azinger on Matthew Wolff and Bryson DeChambeau – “We’re going to have two guys tomorrow in the last group that really have gone their own way. They are cutting-edge and they have taken their own courses to how they want to play this game probably more than anybody on Tour…it’s easy to be self-conscious out here on the PGA Tour, but they’ve overcome that with self-confidence.”
Justin Leonard – “I know a lot of people want to see guys find a way to hit it down the fairway, hit it to the center of the green, find a way to two-putt and make a birdie here and there…but that’s not where the game is these days. And frankly, I think it’s really exciting.”
Brandel Chamblee – “Chris Como (DeChambeau’s swing coach) and George Gankas (Wolff’s swing coach) are the cutting-edge biomechanists in this game. They’re leading this evolution, this revolution that is going on in this game – and it’s not about aesthetics…but they’re producing unprecedented power.”
Roger Maltbie – “Every part of me wants to not like this, that you just reduce the game to power and the fairway becomes less important…especially at a U.S. Open because historically, that’s just not the way it’s been done…but this is impressive and (DeChambeau is) convincing me that he’s not wrong in the way that he’s assessed how to play the game now.”
Azinger – “What are you going to do if you want to neutralize these guys, or if you want to make them accurate? Is power going to trump accuracy in this great game? The answer, it seems, is yes…one single club has made the difference, and it’s the driver.”
On Impact of No Fans
Jim ‘Bones’ Mackay – “No disrespect to Matthew Wolff or any other young player in the field, but this is just a completely different climate out here. These guys know it’s the U.S. Open, but there’s nobody screaming at you between holes, screaming for you, patting you on the back. It’s very quiet, it’s very comfortable, and these guys are executing to the best of their abilities…there’s no question that’s a big part of what these guys are not dealing with.”
On Matthew Wolff (5-under, 1st)
Wolff’s post-round interview with Steve Sands after a 3rd round 65 – “Every time I was in the rough and I had a good lie, I took advantage of it…I think what was really important was the lead I had in Detroit earlier this year when Bryson (DeChambeau) clipped me, but I think being in that lead and knowing what it’s like to sleep on the lead. I feel like I’m going to look back at that a little bit.”
Rich Lerner – “It’s only Saturday, but Matthew Wolff at least on that front side looked like Johnny Miller at Oakmont in 1973.”
Mike Tirico – “This will be the opportunity for him to win in his very first appearance in the U.S. Open. The last person to do that? Francis Ouimet. That happened all the way back in 1913. The date that that happened? September 20th. Tomorrow’s date? September 20th. 107 years later, maybe a new line in history will be written at famed Winged Foot.”
On Bryson DeChambeau (3-under, 2nd)
Steve Sands to DeChambeau in post-round interview – “The difference between being underneath the hole and above the hole here at Winged Foot is…?”
DeChambeau – “It’s the tournament. It’s the tournament. It can cost you the tournament.”
Azinger – “He is the most authentic golf scientist that has ever played the game.”
On Rory McIlroy (1-over, 7th)
Azinger – “I think Rory made the best move. He shot a couple under par, he’s only 1-over for the championship…right now, I think Rory is feeling pretty good about himself.”
On Patrick Reed (3-over, T-11th)
Gary Koch – “All of a sudden, all of those putts that were going in the first two days when he had just 25 putts per round, are not going down today.”
-NBC SPORTS GROUP-
