After a nightmarish start, a weather delay and a rally for the ages, J.J. Spaun made the putt of a lifetime — anyone’s lifetime — to win the U.S. Open on June 15 at the Oakmont Country Club.
The 34-year-old PGA Tour veteran and native of Los Angeles dropped a 64-foot birdie putt on the final hole when he needed only a par, and won his first major and second PGA Tour title with a closing 72 and a 72-hole total of 1-under-par 279.
Spaun defeated Robert MacIntyre (68) by two shots and Viktor Hovland (73) by three.
Spaun overcame bogeys on five of his first six holes, then broke away from a five-way tie for the lead with four birdies on his last seven holes to win. He shot 40-32, cutting eight shots off his front-nine score.
With Scotsman MacIntyre sitting in the clubhouse only one shot behind after Spaun’s two-putt for birdie at No. 17, Spaun split the 18th fairway and hit what was deemed to be a safe 6-iron from 201 yards out onto the middle of the 18th green, 64 feet from the hole.
Needing only a two-putt to win, Spaun shook off more raindrops and made the left-to-right breaker, electrifying the soggy crowd and ending a draining day and week.
Spaun, who lost to Rory McIlroy in a three-hole playoff at The Players Championship, took the lead for good with a birdie putt of 3 feet, 6 inches at the 17th. He had previously made a 40-foot putt at No. 12 and a 22-footer at No. 14 before interrupting his momentum with a bogey at the 15th.
But he parred No. 16 and drove the green at the short par-4 17th to set up his go-ahead two-putt.
Spaun earned $4.3 million and 750 FedEx Cup points for his victory. He’s projected to rise to fourth on the money list with $9,604,180 and from 16th to sixth on the FedEx Cup.
It ended a long day and a long week that began with Spaun firing a bogey-free 66 to take the Open lead. But he fell behind Sam Burns in the second round, had a chance to join Burns in the final twosome in the third round but bogeyed the final hole, then made five 5s in a row to star
Burns, Scott, other contenders melt away
Spaun, Burns, Adam Scott, Carlos Ortiz and Tyrrell Hatton were tied for the lead at 1-over at one point. But the weather, which made the harsh conditions at Oakmont even worse, claimed one after another. Burns, who led after 36 and 54 holes, double-bogeyed No. 15, as did Ortiz. Scott bogeyed Nos. 14 and 15 and Hatton bogeyed the 17th.
The contenders had to endure a weather delay of 1 hour, 40 minutes before returning to race darkness to the end. The USGA had already announced a playoff would be held on Monday.
Spaun made sure it was over on Sunday.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: 2025 US Open: J.J. Spaun drains 64-foot putt to win after a soggy, draining day at Oakmont
Reporting by Garry Smits, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
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