Niemann rebounds from 1st-round penalty with closing 66

If the U.S. Open was a 71-hole championship, Joaquin Niemann might have been the one hoisting the trophy Sunday afternoon.

The Chilean somehow rebounded from a disastrous septuple-bogey 11 on the sixth hole Thursday to not only make the cut but sit in a tie for seventh place as the last groups remained on the course.

Niemann made headlines Friday after being slapped with a two-stroke penalty for throwing a club on the sixth hole during his opening round. That turned a quintuple-bogey 9 into an 11 and contributed to his 78 for the round. He was undeterred, though, firing a 5-under 65 in Round 2 to comfortably make the weekend.

His strong play continued into the weekend, with a 36-hole total of 2-under launching him up the leaderboard and into the top 10. Had Niemann made even a bogey on the sixth hole Thursday, he'd currently be tied with leader Wyndham Clark at 5-under.

Niemann's penalty fell under a new code of conduct rule implemented by the major tournaments this year. While Sergio Garcia received a warning for his behavior after slamming a club at the Masters, Niemann was the first player to be handed a penalty.

"To be honest, yes," Niemann said after Sunday's round when asked if he believed the USGA was making an example of him. "I was not trying to offend anyone. ... I was frustrated. I had my expectations, which are always super high. I was playing good golf. I knew it was going to be a tough week, a long week, a challenging week."

Niemann did keep a sense of humor about the incident, telling reporters with a laugh, "To be honest, it was a good throw."

Should the leaderboard hold, it would be just the second major top-10 finish of Niemann's career, as the LIV star has consistently struggled to bring his fine form from his home circuit to the majors.

Perhaps the wild week at Shinnecock will help him establish a new level of confidence during golf's biggest events moving forward.