Wyndham Clark profits from the taming of Shinnecock, McIlroy level

When the sun came out again on Friday, it was inevitable that a few of the game’s best would take advantage.

Wyndham Clark celebrates after a birdie on the 12th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y., Friday, June 19, 2026.(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Officials for the United States Golf Association got spooked by the meteorologists. Their doom and gloom forecast for the eastern end of Long Island called for extreme winds, and the purveyors of the US Open reacted, hoping to negate any negative fallout.

Their response was to slow down the Shinnecock Hills greens, put the pins in accessible positions, add a bit of water to the greens, and then let the wind blow a gale.