Sam Burns turned a calm return to Muirfield Village into a costly detour Sunday morning, hitting the same tree twice on the par-5 11th hole and making a double-bogey 7 in the suspended third round of the 2026 Memorial Tournament.
The mistake came after storms had stopped play Saturday night, forcing Burns back out early Sunday to finish Round 3 before beginning Round 4. He arrived at the 11th one under for the round and seven under for the tournament, still in range of the leaders and carrying a slim chance at a comeback.
Instead, his tee shot leaked right into deep rough with a tree about 10 yards in front of him. Burns tried to punch out with a long iron, but the first shot slammed into the tree and returned near where it started. His second attempt clipped the same tree again and caromed into the creek that cuts through the fairway. After taking a penalty shot, he finished the hole with double bogey and dropped to five under.
Burns steadied himself enough to birdie two of his remaining holes and card a 71 for the round, but the damage was done. He began Sunday’s final round in solo third at seven under, five shots behind J.T. Poston, with only 18 holes left to make up ground.
That left Burns with the kind of chase that is hard to dismiss but harder to pull off. The U.S. Ryder Cup team member still had an outside chance at turning the week around, yet the path to the trophy now runs through a field separated by five strokes and one hole that changed everything.
