Matthew Wolff raises a toast to Winged Foot

Winged Foot was smouldering as usual, baring its fangs, carving into the flesh of the invading golfers with vigour. As the golfers withered one after another, one man rose like a giant to slay the beast. Well, nearly so and that will do. Matthew Wolff played with remarkable poise and accuracy, coasting through the front nine in an unbelievable 30 strokes with five birdies. It was mighty impressive and enough for a nice cushion at the top of the leaderboard. Wolff made a spectacular 65 to put himself firmly ahead of competition after an intriguing third round in the 120th US Open.

Bryson DeChambeau played the waiting game to perfection. After an early stutter, the mad scientist settled into playing some calculated golf before unleashing himself on the final stretch. He caught just enough break on the 16th for only his second birdie of the round.

At 17, DeChambeau showed why his power packed assault on golf could present some serious challenge to designers around the world. After powering his driver into the right rough, he produced more power with his iron to set himself up for a second straight birdie. That put him just one stroke away from Wolff. But a bogey on the 18th hole meant that DeChambeau put himself in the final group, but two strokes behind Wolff.

Louis Oosthuizen produced a memorable 68 to move into third place, four behind Wolff at 1-under 209 through 54 holes. Hideki Matsuyama played extremely well for an even 70, just as Xander Schauffele. The two of them are even par and tied in fourth behind the South African.

After a depressing 76 on Friday, Rory McIlroy sprang back to life with a solid 68. At 1-over, Rory is just ahead of Zach Johnson.

Wolff, as hard to believe as it may be, hit just two fairways in a round that kept getting bigger as his competitors kept sliding the other way. At one stage, both Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed were within touching distance of Wolff, but as the day wore on, so did their golf.

The 21-year-old Wolff got all his work done on the outward stretch. He posted five birdies as he took full control of the withering leaderboard. Wolff stayed clean and crisp through the 15th hole. The first and only blemish on an otherwise brilliant card came at the 489 yard par-4 16th, but Wolff made amends with a birdie at the final hole to move to 5-under through 54 holes.

DeChambeau had a nightmarish start. He made bogeys on the first two holes as he threatened to dissolve into the crowd. But he played with great resilience and discipline through the rest of the round. DeChambeau made birdies at the 7th, 16th and 17th to move within two strokes off the lead.

The 36 hole leader Reed lived his nightmare on the way home. He made six bogeys and a double on the back nine to slide well over par.

The first round leader Justin Thomas continued to suffer. After starting the week on a record 65, he shot 73 and 76 to put himself well out of contention.