Wyndham Clark Is Thriving in the 'Come and Get Me' Role

Last Sunday, surrounded by hockey-obsessed Canadians, Wyndham Clark donned a Team USA sweater while pouring in a birdie putt at The Rink. Do me a favor, watch this video and tell me this man doesn’t enjoy stirring the pot?

Less than a week later, he’s once again relishing the role of a man with his hand behind his ear.

Shinnecock Hills, with an assist from Mother Nature, has managed to tame all but one of the best players in the world. Four players are even par through 54 holes. Four are 1 under. Then there’s Clark, sitting pretty at 7 under after a hard-fought 70 on Saturday.

He got up and down from everywhere, made every putt he needed to, and took advantage of a few great breaks that otherwise would have led to disaster. Take the par-3 17th, for example. He pulled his tee shot miles left of the putting surface, and ended up in thick fescue. But a TV tower came to his rescue. He was able to drop in a worry-free area, pitch it close, and make a sweat-free par.

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But despite his Herculean—borderline Houdini—effort that kept his separation intact, some fans didn’t seem to care. When he stripped a fairway-wood to four feet on the par-5 16th, all reports from inside the ropes indicated the reaction was akin to a Thursday tap-in par. Perhaps last year's incident at Oakmont lingers more than he'd like. But no matter how you feel about L.A.C.C. as a U.S. Open test, a win tomorrow at Shinny would validate more than his emotional growth.

Since LIV Golf’s poaching, the PGA TOUR has lacked heels. It’s lacked a bad guy. I hope Clark continues to embrace the indifference and disapproval. To be honest, he may earn more fans that way compared to being just another hero.

He’ll hit the pillow tonight with a six-shot lead. A boring final walk around Shinnecock would all but guarantee a second U.S. Open trophy in four years. You might not like Clark’s dominating performance in the Hamptons, but I'm pretty sure he doesn’t care.