US Open co-leader blasts ‘twilight golf’

LOS ANGELES—Wyndham

Clark said he was operating on feel as he drained a six-foot birdie putt at 18 on Saturday to seize a share of the US Open lead as darkness fell in Los Angeles.

“We played twilight golf,” said Clark, who pulled level with Rickie Fowler at the last thanks to his birdie and Fowler’s bogey -the combination erasing Fowler’s two-shot lead.

The drama unfolded in waning light more than four hours after the two teed off at 3:40 pm at Los Angeles Country Club.

“It’s a little ridiculous that we teed off that late,” said Clark, who captured his first US PGA Tour title at Quail Hollow last month.

tle at Quail Hollow last month, had grabbed a one-shot edge through nine holes before back-to-back bogeys at the 11th and 12th.

Unable to get up and down from a greenside bunker at the par-three 11th, Clark then botched his first attempt to chip out of greenside rough at the 12th.

He rebounded with a birdie at 13, but it looked as if he’d be chasing on Sunday after his second shot at 17 found the barranca right of the green and he took a penalty drop on the way to bogey.

Limiting the damage was “huge,” Clark said, as was the birdie at 18.

“I wanted to be in the final group,” Clark said. “I’m not a huge scoreboard watcher, but walking up there I kind of knew where we were at. I really wanted to be in that final group.”

McIlroy ‘stress free’

McIlroy had three birdies and two bogeys and was rarely in real trouble.

“The golf course definitely got a little bit trickier today than the first couple of days,” McIlroy said. “Felt like I played really smart, solid golf. AFP