OAKMONT, Pennsylvania -- A day of demolition-derby golf ended with young Ernie Els of South Africa pulling his last drive behind a tree and making bogey on the 18th hole, dropping him into a rare three-way playoff for the U.S. Open championship at Oakmont with American Loren Roberts and Scotland's Colin Montgomerie. After Sunday's tie result, the three were set to resume play Monday morning for 18 holes of stroke-play, best-score-wins golf to settle a 94th Open no one on this hot, miserably muggy fourth round was able to claim. Of the 10 men within five shots of Els at 7-under after 54 holes, only Roberts (70), Montgomerie (70) and fourth-place finisher Curtis Strange (70) were able to post a sub-par round. And Roberts missed a 4 1/2-foot par putt at the 18th. When Els, playing in the last group, made his putt at 18 for a 73, he was tied with Roberts and Montgomerie at 5-under-par 279. There were all manner of players talking should have, would have and could have in this freaky final round that will necessitate the eighth three-way playoff in Open history and the first three-way since 1963. It was not pretty watching 49-year-old Hale Irwin, only three back at the start of play and going for a record-tying fourth Open title, shoot 78-287. It was sad to see Tom Watson, 44, bogey three of his final five holes and end at 74-283.
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