Don’t be surprised if Sam Burns is spotted walking out to the 11th hole at Muirfield Village Golf Club with a chainsaw before he leaves town.
There’s a tree lining the fairway on that hole that he’d rather not be there.
He maddeningly hit it twice on consecutive shots during a frustrating double-bogey after play resumed June 7 for the third round of the 2026 Memorial Tournament.
Asked if he’d ever had that kind of luck with a tree before, Burns chuckled and shook his head.
“No,” he said. “I guess I need to go cut that tree down. It wasn’t very good to me.”
There’s also a walking bridge on 17 that Burns might have a problem with after his ball bounced onto it to conclude a critical third shot on a bogey hole that dropped him out of a five-way tie for the tournament lead with one hole remaining.
His shot off the bridge near the green sailed high over the hole and landed on the back of the green. He nearly sank a long putt for par from that spot, but wound up 1 over for the hole. Combined with his earlier tree troubles, Burns’ day could’ve gone a completely different direction. Instead, he remained calm and focused.
“Honestly, this golf course is too difficult to get frustrated. It doesn’t do you any good. So, just try to brush it off, move on and focus on the next shot. [Hitting the tree twice] was unfortunate, but I’m the one who did it, so …”
Burns finished tied for fourth in the tournament with Tommy Fleetwood at 10-under 278.
Dispatch reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Sam Burns has tree trouble, sour luck at Memorial Tournament
Reporting by Brian Hedger, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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By Brian Hedger, Columbus Dispatch | USA TODAY Network
