diff --git a/ChangeLog b/ChangeLog
index 37da3e4c93fc1f4d81e62cd43aabba0e8d9749a2..bcffb86c2d46bd3d5bc32ea74f5dd19f7f54e7c9 100644
--- a/ChangeLog
+++ b/ChangeLog
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 	when they have the default cursor position (line 1, column 1).
 	* src/files.c (write_file): Avoid a pointless lstat() when not writing
 	to a temp file, and in the bargain elide two variables.
+	* src/files.c (write_file): Elide an unneeded 'if'.
 
 2016-02-06  Benno Schulenberg  <bensberg@justemail.net>
 	* src/files.c (write_file): Remove the --nofollow option that hasn't
diff --git a/src/files.c b/src/files.c
index 65756976a407b7d60072233ec09ca55265fdcbd7..ae4f2be1a64b80ab87f7cd7c7a0a44ea6918b403 100644
--- a/src/files.c
+++ b/src/files.c
@@ -1765,7 +1765,7 @@ bool write_file(const char *name, FILE *f_open, bool tmp, append_type
 	/* The status fields filled in by stat(). */
     char *realname;
 	/* name after tilde expansion. */
-    FILE *f = NULL;
+    FILE *f = f_open;
 	/* The actual file, realname, we are writing to. */
     char *tempname = NULL;
 	/* The name of the temporary file we write to on prepend. */
@@ -1775,9 +1775,6 @@ bool write_file(const char *name, FILE *f_open, bool tmp, append_type
     if (*name == '\0')
 	return -1;
 
-    if (f_open != NULL)
-	f = f_open;
-
     if (!tmp)
 	titlebar(NULL);