You can guess who had the biggest 54-hole U.S. Open lead — but here's the full list

Tiger Woods' 10-shot lead after the third round of the 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach seemed a feat of Herculean proportions. It was the championship’s 100th playing, and the 24-year-old phenom was making his 100th start as a professional. What followed was less a victory than a coronation.

At the absolute peak of his powers, Woods transformed one of golf’s most exacting stages into his own private showcase. Pebble Beach, perched along the California coastline and revered for its beauty and brutality, became the backdrop for a performance that left competitors chasing shadows and spectators searching for comparisons.

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“What he did at Pebble Beach is still the greatest performance in golf of all time,” Phil Mickelson would later say, speaking as both rival and witness.

The numbers alone still seem outlandish. Woods opened with a 65 and never relented — adding rounds of 69, 71 and 67 to dismantle the field. He finished at 12 under par, a staggering total for a U.S. Open, and 15 shots clear of everyone else. But the margin tells only part of the story. For four days, Woods didn’t just win — he separated himself from the championship itself, redefining what dominance could look like on golf’s toughest stage.

And while large 54-hole leads are few and far between, what Wyndham Clark is doing this week at Shinnecock Hills ranks among the all-time greatest performances. Even after a bogey on the 18th hole, Clark will have a massive six-shot edge as he heads into the final round on Sunday. Here's how it ranks with previous efforts.

Largest 54-hole leads in U.S. Open history

YearLeader54-hole leadFinal position2000Tiger Woods101st2011Rory McIlroy81st1921Jim Barnes71st2026Wyndham Clark6TBD1898Fred Herd61st1903Willie Anderson61st (playoff)1933John Goodman61st1902Laurie Auchterlonie51st1919Mike Brady5T-21930Bobby Jones51st2014Martin Kaymer51st

A total of 39 players have carried a cushion of five shots or more into the final round of a major. From that, 33 have converted, turning Sunday into little more than a procession. The last to let one slip remains Jean van de Velde, whose five-shot lead at the 1999 Open Championship at Carnoustie dissolved into one of the game’s most infamous finishes, ending in a three-man playoff he ultimately lost.

Push that margin to six strokes, and the outcome has been even more predictable. Twenty-one players have reached Sunday with at least a six-shot advantage — and only one failed to close. That exception, however, is memorable: Greg Norman at the 1996 Masters, whose final-round 78 at Augusta National opened the door for Nick Faldo, who stormed through to win by five.

Tim Schmitt is the managing editor of Golfweek.

This article originally appeared on Golfweek: US Open 54-hole leads: How Wyndham Clark stacks against Tiger Woods

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