LACC shows some teeth, Rory and Rickie get ready for battle | Inside Day 5 at the U.S. Open

ICYMI: More questions than answers, Scottie tries a new Scotty | Inside Day 1 at the U.S. Open
ICYMI: Homa’s reaction, LACC’s quirks, Reggie Bush’s pick to win | Inside Day 2 at the U.S. Open
ICYMI: Phil Mickelson arrives, Jon Rahm gets a chipping lesson | Inside Day 3 at the U.S. Open
ICYMI: Record-setting rounds, Stefan Schauffele’s prediction | Inside Day 4 at the U.S. Open

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As the U.S. Open reached the halfway point, the championship’s primary storylines began to come into focus. And Los Angeles Country Club itself continues to be at top of mind. After yielding two record-setting scores on Thursday, it played very differently on Friday. What will the weekend bring?

“[USGA chief championships officer John Bodenhamer] said last night if someone shoots 20 under, he has not done his job,” our Dylan Dethier said.

Game on!

Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler solidified their positions at the top of the leaderboard with solid rounds on Friday. But both players know it will be an uphill battle if they want to claim the U.S. Open trophy on Sunday.

“I’ve been trying and I’ve come close over the past nine years or whatever it is, and I keep coming back,” McIlroy said. “And whether that means that I get rewarded or I get punched in the gut or whatever it is, I’ll always keep coming back.”

While both players have an enormous contingent of fans, there’s at least one VIP who will be pulling for Fowler this weekend.

Boston Celtics center Blake Griffin was on-site on Friday to support friends Max Homa, Brooks Koepka and Collin Morikawa. But as far as a rooting interest?

“I’d love to see Rickie win,” he said.

With a weekend of uncertainty looming, one thing’s for sure: You aren’t going to want to miss one second of the action.

Catch a recap of the the GOLF crew’s highlights from the second round at LACC in the video above. And make sure to tune in every day this week for more exclusive content from the 2023 U.S. Open.

Golf.com Editor

As a four-year member of Columbia’s inaugural class of female varsity golfers, Jessica can out-birdie everyone on the masthead. She can out-hustle them in the office, too, where she’s primarily responsible for producing both print and online features, and overseeing major special projects, such as GOLF’s inaugural Style Is­sue, which debuted in February 2018. Her origi­nal interview series, “A Round With,” debuted in November of 2015, and appeared in both in the magazine and in video form on GOLF.com.