LOS ANGELES — Rickie Fowler has been waiting for what must seem like an eternity for this.
It’s all there for him. Everything he thought he would seize a bunch of years ago and didn’t again sits at his feet.
All that separates the 34-year-old California native from hoisting hardware following his first career major championship are 18 pressure-packed holes Sunday in the final round of the U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club.
Fowler, who shot a cautious even-par 70 Saturday in the third round is tied with Wyndham Clark at 10-under with a one-shot lead over Rory McIlroy entering the final round.
Scottie Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 ranked player, who has been lurking throughout the tournament, is 7-under and three shots back.
Fowler, who had been clutch all day, opened the door with a three-putt bogey on the 18th hole and fell to 10-under.
Harris English is 6-under, while Dustin Johnson and Xander Schauffele are both 5-under and not out of it.
If Fowler is able to close the deal, he will have gone wire-to-wire for the victory, which is a stressful ride.
But it’s a ride he not only has been waiting for his entire career, but one he is poised to take.
Consider that, since 2011, Fowler has 12 top-10 finishes in major championships, a number that includes eight top-five and three runner-up finishes — the most close calls of anyone in that span.
A big moment in the third round for Fowler came on the par-4 12th hole.
He hit a safe drive up the right side of the fairway while Clark took a curious approach, trying to hit a high-cut driver over the trees on the left side of the hole.
His tee shot got tangled in the trees and the ball dropped inside the ropes, giving him a fortunate look at the hole.
After Fowler hit the green with his approach shot, Clark’s second shot trundled just long into the gnarly Bermuda-grass greenside rough. From there, he nearly whiffed on the chip shot and cost himself bogey.
Fowler walked off the green with a one-shot lead at 10-under thanks to Clark’s mistake.
On the 13th, a far side of the course, where the former Playboy mansion sits to the right of the 14th tee, Fowler dropped a 60-plus-foot bomb of a birdie putt to take a momentary two-shot lead at 11-under.
Clark, though, showed some guile and topped off Fowler’s birdie with his own 13-foot birdie putt to climb back to 10-under.
The two leaders then stood on the 14th tee, far removed from any spectators, for more than five minutes listening to the monkeys and exotic birds from the zoo former Playboy founder Hugh Hefner built years ago before his death.
The scene was surreal and serene.
Fowler had a chance to lay a hammer down on the 14th, and he stuffed his approach shot to within five feet for a birdie try. While Clark parred, Fowler watched as his birdie attempt power-lipped out and he had to settle for par, unable to separate himself.
So, Fowler, who minutes before had dropped that long bomb on the 13th green, failed to bury a five-footer on 14.
Both players parred 15 and 16 before Clark blinked on the 17th when he hit a foul-ball approach shot into a penalty area with high tangled grass to the right of the green.
The lie was so bad, Clark opted to take a penalty drop. He dropped, chipped onto the green and made the bogey putt to drop to 9-under.
Fowler two-putted for par to remain at 11-under to take a two-shot lead to the 18th tee.
Clark made a huge bounce-back birdie to get back to 10-under while the Fowler three-jack dropped him to 10-under.
While Fowler and Clark were battling it out in the final pairing, Scheffler made a dramatic move late in his round, with a fairway hole-out eagle on the highly difficult par-4 17th hole and a birdie on the 18th to get to 7-under and remain very much in the Sunday conversation.
Scheffler’s day was a weird one, a roller-coaster round. He began the day at 5-under and basically was running in place until he fell to 4-under and seven shots back with a bogey on the 16th hole.
Then came the fireworks on 17, when Scheffler said he didn’t see the approach shot go in for eagle.
“But there was a nice crowd there on the grandstand behind the green,’’ he said. “I saw where it landed and I thought it would funnel out on to the green and I’d have a look for birdie and then you could see everybody as the noise started to kind of rise, got excited, and then they erupted, which is always nice when you’re standing back there in the fairway.’’
Asked if, as a major champion already and having won six times in the past two years, he’ll feel less nervous on Sunday, Scheffler said: “You’re nervous whether or not you’re leading or chasing. I want to win the golf tournament. It doesn’t matter what tournament it is. I’m showing up and I want to play good and I want to win.
“Going into tomorrow, I’m going to be chasing, but it’s not going feel any different. Got to go out there and execute and do the best I can.’’
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