J.J. Spaun’s final round at Oakmont got off to as bad a start as he could’ve imagined. Bogey-bogey-bogey-par-bogey-bogey. That’s the kind of start that would tick off a single-digit handicap. For a pro contending at a major championship, a series of 5s like that to start the day is downright indefensible.
“I felt like I had a chance, a really good chance to win the U.S. Open at the start of the day,” Spaun said. “It just unravelled very fast.”
Not only was Spaun hitting poor shots, but he was also getting unlucky breaks. His drive on No. 1 drew a nasty lie in the rough. His approach on No. 2 struck the flagstick so hard it caromed some 50 yards back into the fairway. (NBC’s Dan Hicks called it one of the “worst breaks” of the week.) His drive on No. 3 hit a sprinkler head that kept it from finding the short grass. Just six holes into the final round, it looked as though Spaun’s U.S. Open chances were toast.
“It was not a good start to the day,” Spaun admitted.
As you all know by now, Spaun’s Sunday did turn around, and it ended with the 34-year-old claiming his first major title. After the disastrous start, Spaun played the best golf of anyone in the field, playing three under over his final 12 holes to win the 125th U.S. Open.
So, how was he able to bounce back after such a horrendous start to the day? As it turns out, Spaun leaned on some key advice passed down by none other than Tiger Woods.
“I was having lunch with Max Homa at home,” Spaun said. “He was telling a Tiger story where he was like, ‘As long as you just like are still there, you don’t have to do anything crazy, especially at a U.S. Open.’ He’s like, ‘Tiger said this would happen, and the wind will switch, but you’ve got to just stay there. Even if you’re four back, you’ve just got to stay there. You don’t have to do anything crazy.'”
If there’s anyone who knows what it takes to win a U.S. Open, it’s Woods. Of his 15 major titles, three came at the U.S. Open, with the last being a come-from-behind victory in 2008 at Torrey Pines.
“I kind of was thinking about that out there this afternoon, where I was four back, maybe going back out after the delay, and then I made some good pars, nothing crazy,” Spaun said. “Then, next thing you know, I’m like tied for the lead, I think, and within four holes of the restart. That just kind of goes back to that, like you just try to like stay there. You don’t have to do anything crazy, especially at a U.S. Open. All those things came true.”
Turns out that Tiger Woods guys might know a thing or two about what it takes to win a U.S. Open.
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