The US Open is set up for an epic ending, with a number of huge players in contention at the third men's Major of 2024. However, it's not just the top of the leaderboard where it's tight as, lower down the board, there is the small matter of low amateur honors...
Neal Shipley, Luke Clanton and Gunnar Broin were the only three amateurs to make the cut at Pinehurst No.2 and, going into Sunday, it's Shipley and Clanton who are set up for an epic conclusion in North Carolina.
Firing rounds of 76, 69 and 69, Clanton is four-over-par and one of only a handful of players to have fired two under-par days at the treacherous and tough layout.
Why is this set up so nicely then? Well, Shipley produced rounds of 70, 73 and 71 to also sit at four-over, with there being a high chance that the American pair will tee off together on the final round of the US Open on Sunday.
In 2024, Shipley has already claimed low amateur victories at the Masters, with the 22-year-old set to turn professional after the conclusion of the US Open. He secured his PGA Tour Americas card following a 9-for-1 playoff the week prior to the Major tournament.
In regards to Clanton, he is the fifth-ranked amateur in the world, with the Florida State University Sophomore holding the lowest single-season scoring average in the college's history at 69.33.
He is also a 2024 Division I First-Team All-American and was the finalist of the Jack Nicklaus award, which has been won by the likes of Ludvig Aberg, who actually led the US Open going into the weekend.
Along with the two amateurs, there is also Broin, but it's unlikely to be the American's day, as he sits at the bottom of the leaderboard at 14-over-par, some ten shots back of his amateur counterparts.
