Tournament organisers admitted they went “too far” with the set up of Shinnecock Hills after a day of “carnage” in the 118th US Open.
Only three players broke par in the third round and scores of 66 early in the day were enough to lift Tony Finau and Daniel Berger from a tie for 45th to a share of the lead on three over par with defending champion Brooks Koepka and overnight leader Dustin Johnson.
England’s Justin Rose is a shot off the pace after a 73, with Henrik Stenson a shot further back and Masters champion Patrick Reed and Ryder Cup captain Jim Furyk on seven over alongside Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat, whose 68 lifted him from joint last to a tie for seventh.
TWEET OF THE DAY
Rafa Cabrera Bello summed up the feelings of the majority of the players after a tough day on the course.
Painful finish with a 7 at the last that ruins a pretty decent day. Regardless, it was not a fair test of golf. Greens were unplayable, with unnecessary pin positions. @USGA found a way to make us look like fools on the course.A pity they manage to destroy a beautiful golf course
There has to be joint winners after Daniel Berger and Tony Finau both took advantage of good early conditions to shoot 66 and move from joint 45th into a tie for the lead.
“We will admit there were some aspects of the set up where we went too far, in that well-executed shots were not rewarded and in some cases penalised.” – USGA chief executive Mike Davis takes the blame for the course set up.
STATISTIC OF THE DAY
Daniel Berger and Tony Finau started the third round 11 strokes behind. They will be the final pairing in the final round. Crazy.
The 15th played as the toughest hole for the first time this week, thanks largely to a questionable pin position on the rock hard green. Justin Rose made one of just three birdies but 22 bogeys, 10 double bogeys and a triple bogey added up to a scoring average of 4.627.
EASIEST HOLE
For the third day in succession, the fifth hole played as the easiest with an average of 4.716, offering up one eagle and 26 birdies.
ON THE UP
Shinnecock Hill’s water bill after the carnage on day three led to extensive watering of the course ahead of the final round.
ON THE SLIDE
Phil Mickelson’s reputation after he admitted deliberately hitting a moving ball on the 13th green to gain an advantage – and then told critics of his move to “toughen up.”
Croatia took the early initiative in Group D as they saw off Nigeria 2-0 in their World Cup opener at the Kaliningrad Stadium.
With Iceland having held Argentina to a 1-1 draw earlier on Saturday, Croatia took full advantage.
An own goal from Oghenekaro Etebo, set to play at Stoke next season, broke the deadlock just after the hour, with a penalty from captain Luca Modric with 20 minutes left securing three points for Zlatko Dalic’s men.
Croatia had the better of the opening exchanges, with Andrej Kramaric’s long-range effort drifting wide of the right-hand post.
The deadlock was broken in the 32nd minute in somewhat fortunate circumstances.
Modric’s corner was flicked on by Ante Rebic. Mario Mandzukic’s tame diving header looked to be going wide, before the ball was deflected in off midfielder Etebo.
Croatia, though, welcomed their slice of good fortune – and almost added a second just before half-time when Kramaric’s header dropped onto the roof of the net.
The Super Eagles, who played England in a warm-up match at Wembley, regrouped at the interval.
Mandzukic was in the right place in his own penalty area to block Leon Balogun as the defender aimed to head in from a corner.
Chelsea midfielder Victor Moses then fired a low shot wide at the near post.
Croatia should have doubled their lead in the 56th minute, when Ivan Perisic whipped the ball across the Nigeria penalty area from the left channel, only for Eintracht Frankfurt winger Ante Rebic to send his close-range volley wide.
Moses claimed for a penalty when he went down in a heap under a challenge from Ivan Strinic, but Brazilan referee Sandro Ricci waved away the appeal.
With 20 minutes left, Croatia were awarded a spot-kick after Mandzukic was man-handled by Bursaspor defender William Troost-Ekong at a corner.
Modric made no mistake with the penalty, sending goalkeeper Francis Uzoho the wrong way as the Real Madrid midfielder tucked the ball into the bottom left corner.
From there, it looked a tall order for Nigeria to find a way back into the match.
And so, after the first round of games in Group D...
France benefited from a controversial first use of video assistant referee technology at a World Cup as they laboured to a 2-1 win over Australia.
Antoine Griezmann put Les Bleus ahead with a contentious second-half penalty in Kazan after referee Andres Cunha adjudged the forward had been fouled by Joshua Risdon having watched a replay of the incident at the side of the pitch.
Australia, who felt aggrieved as defender Risdon appeared to have touched the ball before tripping Griezmann with his follow-through, quickly levelled through Mile Jedinak’s spot-kick, before a late goal from Paul Pogba clinched victory for France.
Following a VAR Review, @AntoGriezmann scores the subsequent penalty!
Les Bleus, led by an exciting front three of Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele, were overwhelming favourites for the Group C opener.
They began with purpose and forced three saves out of Australia goalkeeper Mat Ryan inside the opening six minutes.
Atletico Madrid forward Griezmann produced the best of the efforts, connecting well with a powerful half-volley from distance which Ryan dealt with comfortably.
Mat Ryan could not keep out Paul Pogba’s late goal (Darko Bandic/AP)
The Socceroos, managed by Dutch coach Bert van Marwijk for the first time in a competitive match, looked like they may be in for a long afternoon but they almost opened the scoring when Hugo Lloris reacted to prevent Corentin Tolisso scoring an own goal following Aaron Mooy’s free-kick.
France’s early promise quickly faded before they were presented with a perfect chance to break the deadlock in questionable circumstances 13 minutes into the second half.
Uruguayan official Cunha initially played on following Risdon’s challenge on Griezmann before pointing to the penalty spot after consulting VAR and viewing a screen next to the dugouts.
Defender Risdon perhaps had reason to dispute the decision, before Griezmann seized the opportunity, whipping the ball to Ryan’s left to claim his 21st international goal.
The lead did not last long, though, as Australia levelled with a spot-kick of their own four minutes later, and this time there was no doubt about the award.
Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti inexplicably handled a free-kick in the box, allowing Socceroos captain Jedinak to calmly send Lloris the wrong way.
Australia appeared to be heading for a deserved point following their dogged performance, but there was another unfortunate twist nine minutes from time, to the relief of France coach Didier Deschamps.
Defender Aziz Behich challenged Pogba just inside the box only to see the Manchester United man’s effort loop over Ryan and narrowly cross the line having bounced down off the underside of the crossbar, with the goal confirmed by goal-line technology.
Ireland avenged an opening-Test defeat to beat the Wallabies on Australian soil for the first time since 1979 but head coach Joe Schmidt insisted there was nothing to celebrate with the series level heading to a decider in Sydney next Saturday.
The Irish put in a vastly improved performance to atone for their 18-9 defeat in Brisbane seven days earlier, reducing the impact of Wallabies flankers David Pocock and Michael Hooper at the breakdown having been dominated by the pair at Suncorp Stadium and recovering some aerial prowess a week on from a masterclass by Australian full-back Israel Folau.
Andrew Conway cancelled out a Kurtley Beale try in the opening 90 seconds with a score on seven minutes as Ireland profited from wing Marika Koroibete’s trip to the sin bin for a tip tackle on Rob Kearney and the recalled Johnny Sexton kicked three first-half penalties before the Australians hit back with a penalty try on 26 minutes that saw Cian Healy binned for collapsing a maul and certain try.
Ireland's Head Coach Joe Schmidt. Pic: INPHO/Dan Sheridan
It left Ireland with a 16-14 lead at half-time but Man of the match Tadhg Furlong made the decisive breakthrough on 54 minutes with a try from short range converted by Sexton, who added a further penalty on 66 minutes to open up a 26-14 lead.
Another yellow, this time for Healy’s replacement Jack McGrath four minutes from time set up a nervy finish as Teneila Tupou powered over and Bernard Foley converted but Ireland hung on for a first victory here in 39 years..
The win helps Ireland hold on to second place behind New Zealand in the World Rugby rankings with Australia missing the opportunity to leapfrog them having failed to claim a 2-0 series lead and they now have a chance to further emulate the 1979 tourists by closing out the series in Sydney next weekend.
While the victory was loudly celebrated by a huge contingent of Irish fans in the AAMI Park crowd of 29,018, the Ireland boss did not feel it was the right time to call it a big moment for his team.
“Probably not right now because all we did was balance the series,” Schmidt said. “I think it all depends on what we can deliver next week and I know the Wallabies will be thinking the same thing. They’re a really good side and if they do get a bit more access I know as you saw toward the end we were chasing shadows.
So, nothing feels monumental when it’s one-all.
“It feels like there’s still a huge amount to play for. So we’ll glue ourselves back together, get the trip out of the way to Sydney tomorrow and Monday, have a bit of a look back at the game and them Tuesday/Thursday get back out on the training pitch in North Sydney Oval and try to work our way through things.
“There’s still a few things that we know we need to do better because we know they’re going to keep getting better. I think it’s really evenly poised and I wouldn’t be keen on favouring either side just because the way the series has gone so far, both games have really been in the balance.”
Ireland could find themselves dealing with a disciplinary issue over Australian suggestions that their scrum half Will Genia was the victim of an off-the-ball incident with Cian Healy that left the Wallaby number nine requiring surgery on a fractured forearm.
The loosehead prop, who himself was forced off injured in the 46th minute, could be in further trouble with a possible citing. Though Wallabies head coach Michael Cheika said his camp would not be reporting the matter, the 27th-minute incident is almost certain to be addressed by citing commissioner Michael O’Leary from New Zealand.
“We ran the play down the front and Willy’s the decoy around the back and he got king hit (cheap shot) from the side – looked like a shoulder – and when you’re not expecting it, that’s what happens,” Cheika said.
“So Hoops (captain Michael Hooper) went down the front, Willy ran around the back – I’m not sure who it was from the other team that came in and hit him – and he jammed his arm and broke it.”
Schmidt meanwhile was looking forward to a series decider which he said took precedence over longer-term development plans for next year’s World Cup.
“We definitely want to win the series, but we've probably got 10 games now between this tour and when we go into our warm-up to the World Cup.
“So, the thing that we want to believe about our squad is that there's less and less between players and, so, selection is a contest every time. And as a result, we'll look back on what guys did well tonight and we'll see how guys travel.
“On Tuesday, we'll have a better idea about some of those guys who took knocks and that will allow us to make a few decisions further along.”
Aside from Healy (AC joint), Ireland lost try scorer Conway (hip pointer) soon after he scored his try and flanker Dan Leavy (sternum) at half-time, though none were considered serious issues, according to their head coach, who was satisfied with a much improved performance.
"I think we looked after our ball a lot better, there were probably half as many turnovers as we had last week, so that didn't allow them as much access to play off turnover ball, where we know they're so dangerous.
I felt we repaired a bit of stuff in the air, I don't think Israel Folau had as much access because Keith Earls was super in the air, he got very high. He's not quite the same size as Israel Folau but he is dynamic when he's going up for the ball.
"The scrum was nice and solid and I felt we even got a little bit of pressure at times, and the ball retention was good.
"In that third quarter, we broke the line a couple of times really well but it was difficult to score in behind it. Nick Phipps' tackle on Keith Earls was an absolute try saver. It's a Nick Phipps special really, he works so hard in behind the line, he's a very good cover defender and he did a great job.
"The pop up to Rob Kearney, he didn't quite get over and there was probably a couple of penalties conceded down there subsequent to that that they probably put some pressure on themselves trying to get off the line and stop us scoring at that stage.
"Thankfully, Tadhg (Furlong) managed to get over in the end. I just thought that third quarter was probably defining for us and allowed us that buffer towards the end where we had Joey Carbery coming on to replace Devin Toner (cramp). I haven't seen that too many times, luckily we didn't have to throw him up in the lineout.
"We were just hanging in towards the end there, which you don't want to be against an Australian team with the athletes they have and the way they like to play with width. It was hard to stop their access, so it was another nip-and-tuck game.
"If people wanted a Test series, I think it's a genuine test every time. That's probably no surprise."
AUSTRALIA: I Folau; D Haylett-Petty, S Kerevi, K Beale (R Hodge, 64), M Koroibete; B Foley, W Genia (N Phipps, 27); S Sio (T Robertson, 71), B Paenga-Amosa (T Latu, h-t), S Kepu (T Tupou, 50); I Rodda (P Samu, 56), A Coleman (R Simmons, 42); D Pocock, M Hooper - captain, C Timu (L Tui, h-t).
Yellow card: M Koroibete 6-16 mins
IRELAND: R Kearney; A Conway (J Larmour, 14), G Ringrose, R Henshaw, K Earls; J Sexton (J Cooney, 79), C Murray; C Healy (J McGrath, 46), N Scannell (R Herring, 48), T Furlong (A Porter, 71); James Ryan, D Toner (J Carbery, 76); P O’Mahony - captain (T Beirne, 64), D Leavy (J McGrath, 32-38; J Murphy, h-t), CJ Stander.
Yellow card: C Healy 27-37 mins; J McGrath 76 mins
The village of Rathmullan in County Donegal didn’t take long to get over the disappointment of Ireland failing to qualify for the World Cup.
A chat outside mass one Sunday morning between parish priest Fr Martin Collum and Rathmullan Celtic Chairman, Cormac Fagan, has lead to the small community adopting Peru as their home nation.
However, it is the fact that they have decided to produce t-shirts for it that has lead to a funny, bizarre twist to the story.
Fr Martin explained why they adopted the country, saying he worked in Peru for 14 years.
He is a great supporter of Allianza Lima - the oldest team in the Peruvian first division - and his hero is Allianza Lima and Peru’s greatest-ever player, Teofila Cubillas.
Fr Martin (right) in an Allianza Lima top during his time in Peru.
Dubbed the ‘Pele of Peru’, Cubillas starred in three World Cups, scoring a total of 10 goals. He’s also Peru’s top scorer, with 26 goals for his country.
Fr Martin said: "When Cormac asked me where I would be watching the Peru matches, and I said I’d no plans, he suggested that I join a few of the lads to watch the match.
Then word got around, and before I knew it, I’d become the Chairman of the Rathmullan Peru Supporters Club’.
They have invited four VIPs from the Peruvian Embassy in Dublin to Rathmullan on Saturday to raise the Peruvian flag in a World Cup opening ceremony at the village putting green.
After the playing of the Peruvian national anthem, ‘Arriba Peru’ will ring out, and then they will watch Peru’s opening match against Denmark in the Beachcomber Bar on the banks of Lough Swilly.
An Allianza Lima flag in Father Martin's parochial house in Rathmullan.
Fr Martin said: "Saturday’s going to be great craic, and it’s a real honour that Alberto Gonzalez ‘Deputy Head of Mission’ his son Javier, and his colleagues Loreto and Juanlu, are joining us for the match.
"It’s 36 years since Peru last qualified for the World Cup, so it’s fantastic for them."
Cormac Fagan added: ‘We approached Joe McHugh’s office, and he contacted the Peruvian Embassy on our behalf, and they were delighted to accept our invitation. The whole village is looking forward to Saturday.
"Rathmullan will become a sea of red and white, with bunting and Peruvian flags in the streets, and everyone wearing their Peru t-shirts. Rathmullan will become Peruvian territory during the matches."
However, it is the t-shirts they decided to get printed for the big match that is providing the cherry on top of the celebrations.
A consultant on the t-shirts just happens to be Alan Rough, the Scotland goalkeeper who was at the mercy of two Cubillas wonder goals in the 1978 World Cup.
It was Alan that suggested that the t-shirts should carry Cubillas’ name, and his number 10 on the back, in testament to the man who broke Scottish hearts in Argentina in 1978.
Alan said: "My friend lives in Rathmullan, and she asked me if I knew of a Peru legend to put on the back of the shirts, and unfortunately I’d had first-hand knowledge of Cubillas in Argentina.
"Even though Cubillas’ most famous World Cup goal, was a free kick that flew past me, fair play to him. There was only one name that should be on the back of those shirts.
"I’ve been to Rathmullan, it’s a beautiful place, and I’m happy to get behind Peru too."
So, if you’re a Peruvian, living in Ireland, then make your way along the Wild Atlantic Way to Rathmullan to join in the celebrations on Saturday.
After Peru’s opening match against Denmark in the Beachcomber Bar on Saturday, the White Harte and Big Paddy’s will be the venues for Peru's other two first-round matches.
Rathmullan Main street.
The raising of Peruvian flag at Rathmullan’s Putting Green will performed by Peruvian Deputy Head of Mission and Fr Martin Collum, Chairman of the Rathmullan Peru Supporters Club at 3pm.
The 2026 World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States should be “more financially viable” than Qatar 2022 and other recent tournaments, say researchers from the University of York.
FIFA announced the United bid comfortably beat that of rivals Morocco at its congress in Moscow on Wednesday, winning 67 per cent of the 203 votes cast.
“Awarding the World Cup to Canada, the US and Mexico represents a large and potentially complex project – spread between three countries,” Dr Alex Gillett from the University of York’s Management School told Press Association Sport.
“Other recent and planned World Cups however, such as South Africa 2010, Brazil 2014 or Qatar 2022, all required expensive and financially risky stadium and infrastructure investments from their hosts.
“In contrast, the Canada, US and Mexico World Cup should present less difficulties to its organisers and to FIFA because existing stadiums should be usable with a few adjustments.
“Our research shows that the World Cups that make do and mend existing stadiums appear to be more financially viable for their host nations than World Cups involving the building of lots of new shiny stadiums.
“For example, the 1966 World Cup in England and the 1994 tournament in the USA are remembered as being successful – but in both of those cases the emphasis was on using existing stadiums.
The world will unite in North America! #United2026 has officially won the right to host the @FIFAWorldCup!
“There are other contributory factors of course, but stadium-related costs are very important to the bottom line for hosts.”
FIFA will choose 16 host cities for the 2026 tournament from a list of 23, which includes the northernmost city of Edmonton in Canada and Mexico City, which lies 2,478 miles south.
The enormous travel distances involved for competing teams and fans is a major problem organisers will have to overcome if the 2026 tournament is to be successful, Dr Gillett said.
“Perhaps 2026 will catalyse or be used as a reason to bring forward some transport investment,” he added. “But this World Cup presents many logistical challenges for fans hoping to travel around.
“President Trump’s pledge to build a wall on the border with co-host Mexico is one such example, if it goes ahead.
“Also, overseas soccer fans from some nations may find it difficult, if not impossible, to enter the USA if recent US border control policies continue.”
