OAKMONT, Pa. (AP) — Thriston Lawrence walked onto the 10th tee box at 2:20 p.m. to begin his second round at the U.S. Open with his name near the top of the front page of the leaderboard.
Nearly six hours and 73 shots later, the South African's name wasn't so high. And his round still wasn't quite over.
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Taylor Pendrith, of Canada, waits tee off on the 12th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Thriston Lawrence, of South Africa, lines up a putt on the 12th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Scottie Scheffler plays out of the Church Pews bunker on the third hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Viktor Hovland, of Norway, reacts after missing a putt on the 18th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Viktor Hovland, of Norway, reacts after making double bogey on the second hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Brooks Koepka prepares to putt on the 10th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Viktor Hovland, of Norway, hits from a bunker on the second hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Welcome to Oakmont, where one of golf's toughest tests began with two — or three in the case of Lawrence and a handful of others still on the course when play was suspended at around 8:15 p.m. as a storm passed through — of the sport's longest days.
Lawrence was standing over a 4-foot par putt in the middle of a downpour for a 4-over 74 when the horn blew, 5 hours, 55 minutes after his scheduled tee time.
He turned to ask an official if he could putt out. When the answer came back “no," he marked his ball and hustled with umbrella in hand to the clubhouse.
"Overall, I played nicely, but frustrating day because it felt like we were out there for seven hours,” Lawrence said.
Close enough.
While the late dash of weather didn't help, the pace at the sprawling par-70 layout carved into a hilly slice of Western Pennsylvania so big it's divided by an interstate spared no one.
Not world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who admitted it "it felt long to me,” after taking 5 1/2 hours to put together a 1-over 71 on Friday morning that left him 4 over for the tournament, seven shots behind leader Sam Burns.
Not first-round leader J.J. Spaun, who needed nearly 5 hours, 40 minutes to finish up a 72 that put him in the final group with Burns on Saturday.
Yet Scheffler didn’t find himself checking his watch too often, not even during waits that stretched to 15 minutes or more between shots.
“I’ve got too many concerns other than the pace it takes to get around this place,” he said with a shrug.
By comparison, Scheffler and playing partners Viktor Hovland and Collin Morikawa might have gotten off easy.
It took Lawrence’s group well over an hour to get through three holes, thanks to a logjam on the tee at the par-5 12th. Players were frequently forced to wait 20 minutes or more to hit their tee shot while members of the group ahead of them either waited for the green to clear in hopes of reaching it in two shots or wandered through the 5-inch-plus rough in hopes of finding their ball. (Hardly a given).
Unless you stick it close (and you probably won't), there's no chance at making up times on greens so fast and so frustrating that Edward S. Stimpson invented his now-eponymous and ubiquitous tool to measure their actual speed.
Even seemingly innocuous approach shots aren't immune, as qualifier Will Chandler found out Friday in the second round when his wedge into the par-4 second hole landed a few paces from the back of the green, then hit reverse and kept rolling for 40 seconds before settling back in the fairway.
Part of the issue at Oakmont is the combination of the layout — where players literally have to cross a bridge over an interstate to get from the first green to the second tee, and again while going from the eighth green to the ninth tee — and the decisions the course forces you to make.
There's typically a backup at the par-4 17th, for example, because at around 300 yards (albeit uphill ones) it's drivable, meaning the group on the green typically has to putt out before the group behind them can go.
Throw in the stakes — the lure of golf immortality (or at the very least, a healthy paycheck for making the cut) for the pros and the walk of a lifetime for amateurs like dentist turned qualifier Matt Vogt — and yeah, things can drag on a bit.
Hovland's second trip through Oakmont was an adventure. His 1-under 69 included only eight pars. There was an eagle thanks to a pitch-in on 17, five birdies, three bogeys, and a double.
During a regular tour event, when scores are lower and the pace is a far more palatable five hours or less, Hovland isn't sure he would have been able to keep things from spiraling out of control after the second, when a poor drive into the right rough was followed by a mangled pitch into a bunker and eventually a double bogey that threatened to rob him of the momentum he'd build over his first 10 holes.
“If it would have happened at another tournament, for example, I could have potentially lost my mind there a little bit,” he said. “But I felt like I kept things together very well.”
The fact Hovland had time to let his frustration melt away before his driver on the third tee may have helped. The 27-year-old Norwegian knows his game well enough to know that he tends to speed things up when a round threatens to go sideways, and not in a good way.
There was no chance of that on Friday.
“Yeah, you might have had a bad hole on the last hole and then you’re sitting on the tee box for 10-20 minutes,” he said. “At least it gives you a good opportunity to get that out of your system and reset and think about the next shot.”
Maybe the rhythm of the day will feel more like normal on Saturday, when the field goes out in pairs instead of threesomes. Or maybe not. Considering the lure of history, he's not going to complain.
“Honestly, we play pretty slow on Tour anyway,” he said with a smile. “So what’s another 40 minutes to go around Oakmont.”
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Taylor Pendrith, of Canada, waits tee off on the 12th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Thriston Lawrence, of South Africa, lines up a putt on the 12th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Scottie Scheffler plays out of the Church Pews bunker on the third hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Viktor Hovland, of Norway, reacts after missing a putt on the 18th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Viktor Hovland, of Norway, reacts after making double bogey on the second hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Brooks Koepka prepares to putt on the 10th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Viktor Hovland, of Norway, hits from a bunker on the second hole during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club Friday, June 13, 2025, in Oakmont, Pa. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
A July Fourth weekend deluge in Texas caused catastrophic flash flooding that has killed at least 89 people.
Camp Mystic in Kerr County says Monday morning that it is “grieving the loss” of 27 campers and counselors as the search continues for victims of the disaster. The flooding sent a wall of water through the century-old summer camp Friday.
The risk of life-threatening flooding was still high in central Texas with more rain on the way.
The Texas Hill Country is home to several summer camps. Searchers there have found the bodies of 75 people, including 27 children. Fourteen other deaths have been reported in other parts of Texas.
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A table with snacks and water sat at the bottom of a hill where cracked dirt and depressed grass marked the landscape toward the Guadalupe River.
It was a bright and sunny 80 degrees (26 degrees Celsius) shortly before 2 p.m. as private citizens from across the state hacked away at mangled trees not yet traversed by official rescue operations.
“I had guys show up at that other site,” said volunteer Terrance Ogden, referring to authorities cutting off entry from private individuals in Kerrville. “They got told ‘Go to Center Point.’”
The group, which includes two canine teams as well as boats and vehicles, was expected to arrive in San Antonio on Tuesday morning and remain in Texas for up to 14 days.
“The team we are sending has the training necessary for dealing with these kinds of disaster environments and will be able to expedite the search efforts that continue to take place,” Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen said in a statement.
“Texas has helped us when we’ve had different issues throughout the years,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said during a news conference. “And we’re happy to step up.”
DeSantis said it’s unfair to politicize the initial response to the unpredictably destructive storm and flooding.
“Mother Nature, especially the water, we see that in Florida with storm surge, it can be really, really nasty,” DeSantis said. “And this was a biblical flood. It was much more than what I think they anticipated.”
Asked if Trump may delay his promise to close FEMA and leave disaster response up to the states, Leavitt said, “The president has always said he wants states to do as much as they can.”
She added that Texas officials are doing a “tremendous job” in response to the flooding.
Pressed in a subsequent question about phasing out FEMA, Leavitt said she’d already answered the question — even though she hadn’t.
Hanna and Rebecca Lawrence of Dallas had just finished second grade, their parents said.
“Hanna and Rebecca brought so much joy to us, to their big sister Harper, and to so many others,” John and Lacy Lawrence said in a statement. “We will find ways to keep that joy, and to continue to spread it for them. But we are devastated that the bond we shared with them, and that they shared with each other, is now frozen in time. “
David Lawrence, the girls’ grandfather and former publisher of the Miami Herald, said “it has been an unimaginable time for all of us.” He said the girls gave their family, including their sister, joy.
“They and that joy can never be forgotten,” he said in a statement.
▶ More about the victims
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt says the president will be visiting the devastating flooding “later this week.”
She called what happened a “once in a generation national disaster” and urged “everyone in the area to remain vigilant, listen to all warnings and respond accordingly.”
Leavitt said the visit would likely come Friday, but that no final decision had been made.
She also bristled at suggestions that deep Trump administration cuts to federal services may have affected authorities’ response to the flooding.
She blamed Democrats and said that faulting “President Trump for these floods is a depraved lie” and insisted that the National Weather Service “did its job” in spreading warnings about possible catastrophic funding.
In a post on Instagram, Hunt mourned the loss of so many lives, “including a precious little Hunt cousin, along with several friend’s little girls.” She did not provide the victims’ names.
After being turned away from rescue efforts near Kerriville, the volunteers launched their own search in Center Point about 10 miles (16 kilometers) away from the most severe flooding.
“This morning, we showed up and basically the government has taken our site and the civilians working in there,” said Cord Shiflet, one of the civilian volunteers spearheading the effort.
About 150 people are hacking through flattened and muddy brush and combing through debris near the Guadalupe River, according to Shiflet.
“Louisiana stands with Texas, and we are committed to doing whatever it takes to assist in their recovery,” Gov. Jeff Landry said.
“The last day has brought unimaginable grief to many families and we mourn with them as well as holding out hope for survivors,” the Texas Republican wrote over the weekend.
A staffer in his office didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Those wanting to support relief and recovery efforts should donate to the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, officials said during a news conference.
The nonprofit’s website says it will “direct funds to vetted organizations providing rescue, relief and recovery efforts.”
Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice and Mayor Joe Herring said that while there was a continued need for volunteers, those looking to help should first register with the Kerrville Salvation Army.
“We need focused and coordinated volunteers, not random people showing up and doing what they do,” said Herring.
The warm water of the Gulf fueled the moist atmosphere, and even more moisture came from areas over the Pacific Ocean to the west.
Remnants of moisture from Tropical Storm Barry also lingered over Texas because the jet stream, a current of air that moves weather patterns, wasn’t there to push it away.
The combination gave the storm plenty of fuel once it got started.
Meteorologists said that an atmosphere warmed by human-caused climate change can hold more moisture and allow bad storms to dump more rain, though it’s hard to connect specific storms to a warming planet so soon after they occur.
A video posted by Devon Paige shows girls on a bus singing the lyrics to “Pass It On,” a Christian hymn written by Kurt Kaiser.
“I wish for you, my friend,” they chant, their bus rolling past toppled trees, and a rescue vehicle, flashers on. “This happiness that I’ve found.”
As the bus passes a National Guard Jeep, the terrified chorus sings, “I’ll shout it from the mountaintop.” In unison, they shout, “Praise God.”
Most of those requesting assistance needed help replacing their passports, President Claudia Sheinbaum said. Nine people asked for help to return to Mexico.
Sheinbaum said proudly that two Mexican girls helped to rescue other girls.
She said that the consulate is “in constant communication with the families, and when weather conditions permit, they will visit the shelters.”
“This is not a time for partisan finger-pointing and attacks,” the Republican senator said. “There will be a time to find out what could have been done differently. My hope is, in time, we learn some lessons to implement the next time there is a flood.”
Cruz said the situation in Kerr County is “every parent’s nightmare.”
“The pain and agony of not knowing your children’s whereabouts is the worst thing imaginable,” Cruz said during a news conference with local officials.
The bodies of 27 children are among those that have been recovered, officials said during a news conference.
Ten campers and one counselor remain missing, officials said.
Officials had previously said the death toll in Kerr County was 68. Ten other deaths have been reported in other parts of Texas.
Slow-moving, heavy rainfall is expected to reach up to 4 additional inches, the National Weather Service said.
The flood watch lasts through 7 p.m. local time.
The 10 a.m. Central news conference will be the first official update since Camp Mystic officials confirmed early this morning that they lost 27 campers and counselors when a wall of water swept through the campground in the middle of the night on the Fourth of July.
The Texas Hill Country in the central part of the state is naturally prone to flash flooding due to the dry dirt-packed areas where the soil lets rain skid along the surface of the landscape instead of soaking it up.
Friday’s flash floods started with a particularly bad storm that dropped most of its 12 inches (30 centimeters) of rain in the dark, early morning hours.
▶ What to know about the flash floods
Survivors have described the floods as a “pitch black wall of death” and said they received no emergency warnings.
Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, who lives along the Guadalupe River, said Saturday that “ nobody saw this coming.” Various officials have referred to it as a “100-year-flood,” meaning that the water levels were highly unlikely based on the historical record.
And records behind those statistics don’t always account for human-caused climate change.
Additionally, officials have come under scrutiny about why residents and youth summer camps along the river were not alerted sooner than 4 a.m. or told to evacuate.
Officials noted that the public can grow weary from too many flooding alerts or forecasts that turn out to be minor.
Kerr County officials said they had presented a proposal for a more robust flood warning system, similar to a tornado warning system, but that members of the public reeled at the cost.
Organizers at a staging area in Center Point said more than 1,000 volunteers have been directed to the area about 8 miles (13 kilometers) south of Kerrville, and more are being sent.
A first responder carries out a search and rescue operation near the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area, Monday, July 7, 2025, in Ingram, Texas. (AP Photo/Eli Hartman)
Volunteers carry out search and rescue operations near the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area Monday, July 7, 2025, in Ingram, Texas. (AP Photo/Eli Hartman)
First responders carry out search and rescue operations near the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area, Monday, July 7, 2025, in Ingram, Texas. (AP Photo/Eli Hartman)
Texas Department of Public Safety Troopers load a recovered body into the back of a vehicle near the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area, Monday, July 7, 2025, in Ingram, Texas. (AP Photo/Eli Hartman)
Officials ride an armored vehicle near Camp Mystic along the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area Sunday, July 6, 2025, in Hunt, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Military personnel return a camp trunk salvaged from down river to Camp Mystic along the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area Sunday, July 6, 2025, in Hunt, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
A sign for Camp Mystic is seen on a hill as a heavy-lift military helicopter flies by over the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area Sunday, July 6, 2025, in Hunt, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Officials are seen in the Guadalupe River as they assist in recovery efforts after a flash flood swept through the area Sunday, July 6, 2025, in Hunt, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Officials ride a boat as they arrive to assist with a recovery effort at Camp Mystic along the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area Sunday, July 6, 2025, in Hunt, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
