The 28-year-old American made six birdies against a lone bogey to stand on three-under 137 after 36 holes on the punishing layout.
“It felt like I played really well. Today was really nice,” Burns said. “There’s obviously a lot of golf left on a very tough course.”
The only two US Open rounds at Oakmont lower than Burns’s 65 were Johnny Miller’s final-round 63 to win in 1973 and a 64 by Loren Roberts in the 1994 third round.
American J.J. Spaun made bogeys on three of the last four holes to shoot 72 and stand second on 138 with Norway’s Viktor Hovland third on 139 after a 68 — the top trio being the only players under par after 36 holes.
“I was definitely anxious to get back out here and see how the game would pan out, and it ended up being a pretty good day,” Spaun said.
“It was more of a true US Open round, a lot of back and forth, a lot of grinding, bogeys. It was still an overall good day. I’m still right there.”
World number 14 Hovland marvelled at 22nd-ranked Burns and his stunning round.
“Super impressive,” Hovland called it. “It just feels like you have to play absolutely perfect and have some good breaks going your way, as well, but it’s definitely doable.”
World number two Rory McIlroy struggled to make the cut, with double bogeys at the first and third holes, but sank a five-foot birdie putt at the 18th to shoot 72 and stand on 146, securing a spot inside the low 60 and ties to make the weekend.
Bryson DeChambeau fired a 77 to stand on 150 and miss the cut, the first defending champion to miss the US Open cut since Gary Woodland in 2020.
Also missing the cut was six-time US Open runner-up Phil Mickelson, who needed a win to complete a career Grand Slam.
Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler and Spain’s Jon Rahm were seven adrift on 144. Scheffler fired a 71 with five bogeys and four birdies.
“Felt like me getting away with one-over today wasn’t all that bad,” Scheffler said. “It could have been a lot worse.”
Rahm fired a frustrating 75.
“I’m too annoyed and too mad right now to think about any perspective,” Rahm said. “Very frustrated. Very few rounds of golf I played in my life where I think I hit good putts and they didn’t sniff the hole.”
With few exceptions, Oakmont was delivering blows to golf’s top talent.
“Everyone seems like they’re exhausted when they come in off the course just because it’s a punch in the face,” American Denny McCarthy said. “It just takes a lot out of you.”
Back-nine starter Burns drained a 21-foot birdie putt at 11, a six-footer to birdie the par-three 13th and back-to-back short birdie putts at 17 and 18.
Burns answered a bogey at the first with a five-foot birdie putt at the second and reached the green in two to set up a tap-in birdie at the par-five fourth hole, then parred into the clubhouse, sinking a 22-foot par putt at the ninth to close his round.
“It’s really difficult,” Burns said. “Sometimes the best thing is just to take your medicine.”
Burns, who shared ninth at last year’s US Open for his best major finish, last won at the 2023 WGC Match Play, but he fired a Sunday 62 before losing a Canadian Open playoff last week.
“I felt like my game was in good form coming in here,” he said.
Australian Adam Scott and American Ben Griffin shared fourth on 140.
France’s Victor Perez aced the par-three sixth hole from 192 yards, hitting the 54th hole-in-one in US Open history but only the second ace at a US Open at Oakmont. Perez shot 70 to stand sixth on 141. (AFP)
