Rory McIlroy was a few shots away from being in Sunday’s final pairing with DeChambeau.

That could have turned the 2024 US Open into an epic tournament with two of the game’s best golfers going head-to-head.

Instead, McIlroy is in the second-to-last group and Matthieu Pavon will play alongside DeChambeau. McIlroy’s Saturday ended poorly with bogeys on the 15th and 17th holes.

McIlroy can still pose the biggest challenge to DeChambeau, though, as he was one of the few golfers to reach the six-under mark on Saturday.

He produced three birdies, one bogey and 10 pars in his first 14 holes. A similar start on Sunday will put McIlroy squarely in competition with DeChambeau.

Of course, he has to finish the job on the final four holes, but if he can do that, McIlroy will at least have a shot to end his decade-long major drought.

Pavon and Patrick Cantlay each could mount a fight as well, but they combined for one birdie after the eighth hole on Saturday. Even-par golf will place them in the top five, but it may not be enough to keep up with DeChambeau.