Tag: golf

Bryson DeChambeau is now a two-time U.S. Open champion, clinching the title at Pinehurst No. 2 four years after he did so at Winged Foot in New York. He did not have his best stuff on Sunday, but he found a way to get the job done, thanks partly to Rory McIlroy, who made three bogies over his final four holes to lose by one.

With his win, DeChambeau enters rare territory, joining Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods as the only players to have ever won a U.S. Amateur and multiple U.S. Open titles—pretty good company to join. On the flip side, McIlroy’s major drought continues, as his downfall on Sunday was perhaps the most heartbreaking moment of his illustrious career.

Here are five takeaways from the sandhills of North Carolina:

1. An all-time classic U.S. Open

The 124th U.S. Open will go down in the history books as one of the best ever. We had two of the best players in the world—Bryson DeChambeau and Rory McIlroy—duking it out on a challenging golf course on the back nine, leaving everyone on the edge of their seats.

You can not ask for anything more at a major championship. Every shot was a must-watch, from DeChambeau’s third shot on the 10th all the way to his heroic sand save on the 18th hole. Rory McIlroy produced magical moments, too, until his putter went ice cold on the 16th and 18th holes, which shocked the world and left everyone in disbelief.

But this is a tournament people will remember for a long time.

In the post-round press conference, Kevin Van Valkenburg of No Laying Up said to DeChambeau, “It doesn’t feel like too much hyperbole to feel like this is one of the great U.S. Opens in history.”

Before Van Valkenburg could finish his question, DeChambeau chimed in, saying, “Wow,” doing so in disbelief after a rollercoaster day that could have gone either way.

DeChambeau then said that he felt “thankful” to have been a part of it. But in all seriousness, the golfing world should count their blessings to have witnessed such a great championship amid so much division within the sport.

2. Bryson DeChambeau—second best in the world?

Bryson DeChambeau has played better across the three major championships than any other player, including Scottie Scheffler.

Scheffler won The Masters, The Players, and three other Signature Events this season. But in the tournaments where he has played alongside DeChambeau, the LIV Golf star got the better of him twice.

DeChambeau tied for 6th at Augusta National and then finished solo second to Xander Schauffele at Valhalla. Now, he is the U.S. Open champion, triumphing on a course where Scheffler sorely struggled for four straight days.

Scheffler is still the top-ranked player in the world, but at this point, DeChambeau should slide in as the number two.

Photo by Tracy Wilcox/PGA Tour via Getty Images

He has proven himself on the biggest stages this season, demonstrating a skillset that stretches beyond his ability to hit 350-yard drives. His short game was incredible all week; he made putts when needed, except on the par-3 15th on Sunday. DeChambeau stepped up and hit the shots when he had to, with no bigger one coming on the 18th hole, where he got up and down from the bunker 55 yards short of the green.

Best of all, golf fans have embraced DeChambeau. They used to view him as a pariah; now, he’s arguably the sport’s biggest star.

3. Rory McIlroy’s collapse worse than Mickelson’s in ‘06, Dustin Johnson’s in ‘15

I’m not so sure Rory McIlroy can ever recover from what transpired down the stretch on Sunday.

Let’s start with the tee shot on the par-3 15th, a hole that he bogeyed on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. At that point, McIlroy sat at 8-under par, with firm control of the tournament. He had just made birdies on the 9th, 10th, 12th, and 13th holes to pull ahead and into the solo lead.

But on this very hole, McIlroy knew that any shot long was dead. So, from 205 yards out, McIlroy pulled a 7-iron. He then hit a lower draw than normal, trying to pound one into the center of the green. But since McIlroy hits a draw, and a right-to-left ball flight does not land softly, his shot bounced hard on the firm surface and rolled off the back of this ‘Turtleback’ green. It settled up against wiregrass, assuring a bogey.

Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images

So, why in the world did he attempt to rocket a hard, low 7-iron, instead of a high fade, perhaps with a 6-iron? Even if he came up short, he could have saved par to that hole location. But as soon as he went over, the collapse was on.

Then came the difficult par-4 16th.

McIlroy hammered a drive, played a smart second shot, and a par looked all but assured—until he missed his par attempt from 2-feet-9-inches. That miss shocked the world, as it marked McIlroy’s first miss from inside three feet all season, per Justin Ray.

Suddenly, McIlroy sat at 6-under, with DeChambeau tied right behind him. Two more pars would likely force a playoff, and a birdie on either 17 or 18 would win, thus snapping the drought.

He missed his tee shot left into the bunker on 17 but managed to save par. Then, on 18, McIlroy pounded a drive again, but it missed the fairway left and nestled up against the wiregrass. Why McIlroy did not opt to hit a 3-wood here is another pressing question in his decision-making.

Anyhow, he scurried his second shot from the native area to about 20 yards short of the pin, right in front of the green. He then hit a solid chip, but it carried a bit too much pace, settling 3-feet-6-inches above the hole. That set the stage for a slippery, downhill slider that nobody would want to have in a U.S. Open.

McIlroy missed that, too, signing for a 1-under 69 and finishing the U.S. Open at 5-under overall. DeChambeau, of course, made his miraculous par behind him, thus winning the title and leaving McIlroy sick to his stomach.

Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

But why does this collapse rank higher than Phil Mickelson’s mishap on the 72nd hole at Winged Foot in 2006 and higher than Dustin Johnson’s three-putt gaffe at Chambers Bay in 2015?

Both Mickelson and Johnson faced the music after their respective collapses.

McIlroy did not.

Mickelson, after blowing it on 18 and handing the title to Geoff Ogilvy, famously said, “I’m in shock, I can’t believe I’ve just done that. I’m such an idiot.”

Johnson, meanwhile, received 11 questions from the media in 2015, each of them primarily focused on what transpired on the 18th green, where he gifted the championship to Jordan Spieth.

“Disappointed,” Johnson said on that fateful Father’s Day in the Pacific Northwest.

“I had all the chances in the world. I’m really proud of the way I hit the ball. Proud of the way I handled myself all day.”

Do you know how many questions McIlroy fielded on Sunday?

Zero.

Instead of talking to the press, or to anyone from NBC Sports for that matter, McIlroy bolted to his car before DeChambeau even accepted the trophy. His private plane was in the air by 7:30 p.m. ET, roughly 40 minutes after he missed on 18, and he landed in South Florida an hour and 14 minutes later, per Radar Atlas.

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

I understand that facing scrutiny in the age of social media and 24/7 news coverage is demanding and difficult, especially in moments of heartbreak and agony. I also know that he has a lot going on in his personal life. But McIlroy makes millions of dollars to play golf. Hundreds of people also cover the sport, making nowhere close to what McIlroy earns. It’s their job to share McIlroy’s perspective with millions around the world in an effort to grow the game and provide a viewpoint on one of the biggest events in the sport.

It’s also McIlroy’s duty to explain what happened.

Do you think Scott Norwood of the Buffalo Bills wanted to meet the media after he missed the game-winning field goal in Super Bowl XV? No. But he did. Norwood answered every single question—just like Mickelson and Johnson.

That’s what professional athletes do. McIlroy fell short of that, and because he blew off the media and failed to explain himself, his collapse tops those seen in 2006 and 2015.

McIlroy knows that too—hence his decision to get out of dodge.

4. Props to Pinehurst No. 2

Take a bow, Pinehurst No. 2.

You delivered a marvelous, thrilling championship that entertained everyone for an entire week.

We saw diabolical shots, ‘Ping-Pong’ games, putts off greens, surreal chip-ins, unthinkable holes-in-one, and an all-world finish that we will remember forever.

The strategy required on this golf course is also second to none, as this Donald Ross masterpiece made players think more about angles than anything else.

Photo by Keyur Khamar/PGA Tour via Getty Images

The greens, as crazy as they are, starred like an Oscar-winning actor.

The native wiregrass that lined every fairway, with 75 different plants scattered about, left everyone wondering what would happen next on every single shot that went there.

The layout of the course is also a thing of beauty. Tricky par-3s befuddle the player towards the end of each nine, while the 5th and 10th holes—both par-5s—provided rare birdie opportunities earlier on.

All in all, the course delivered, but there is one thing that Pinehurst No. 2 can do for when this championship returns in 2029: make the wiregrass more abundant and more penal. Plenty of players had clean shots from there all week. The U.S. Open prides itself on being golf’s most demanding test, so why not add more of a challenge to the waste area? It will only entertain everyone else even more.

5. An ode to Johnson Wagner, Golf Channel’s biggest star

After the championship concluded, Johnson Wagner of the Golf Channel decided to re-create the shot Bryson DeChambeau hit on 18.

Mind you, Wagner has become a golf celebrity in recent months simply because of these short segments on live television.

Since The Players Championship in March, Wagner, on ‘Live From,’ has: hummed balls into the side of a hill, roped a punch shot off a tree, climbed into the woods to asses a Xander Schauffele ruling, twice got the yips on air, and then, this week, he walked through why Tony Finau and Ludvig Åberg collapsed on the 13th hole.

But nothing could top what he did on Sunday.

After rocketing an attempt over the green, DeChambeau pulled up to the spot where he played his now-famous shot and embraced Wagner. Then, DeChambeau told Wagner to hit another one, with the champion as a witness. He also provided some insight on how to play the shot.

With a 50-degree wedge in hand, Wagner hit a perfect chunk and run. His ball landed on the green and rolled towards the cup, just as DeChambeau’s did in regulation.

But Wagner’s ball stopped even closer than DeChambeau’s, which elicited a massive celebration from the now-reigning U.S. Open champion and Golf Channel’s newest, and now, biggest star.

Even Scott Van Pelt of ESPN referred to Johnson as such, an honor worthy of tremendous recognition. So bravo, Johnson, for closing out a memorable week at Pinehurst No. 2 in style.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.