The only noise players in the last group of the U.S. Open could hear during their approach shots on the 18th fairway was fans in the grandstands and around the 18th green celebrating what J.J. Spaun had just done.
He holed a 65-foot putt to win the first major championship in his career.
Sam Burns probably envisioned himself becoming a first-time major winner the previous day as he marched up the 18th fairway on Sunday. Adam Scott, a one-time major winner, probably wanted to hear his name chanted as it was on the 18th green during the third round. Instead, he heard the chants of “J.J. Spaun! J.J. Spaun! J.J. Spaun!” as he walked up the muddy fairway.
Hardly anyone cared about the last players when they were on the 18th green. The majority of fans just wanted them to putt their shots out, earn polite golf claps and leave. The stage was set for J.J. Spaun, the champion of Oakmont and the only player to shoot under par for the tournament.
Herds of people followed Burns and Scott’s group to start the day, but by the time the two were on the 16th tee, no one cared — the majority of the gallery at the U.S. Open wanted to see every possible shot from Spaun because the last group was helpless. Burns and Scott were both too far behind at this point to have a shot at winning.
“We must have looked horrible, both of us playing like that,” Scott said. “But that’s what can happen in these things. If you get a little off, you’re severely punished.”
On hole No. 10, Burns led Spaun by four shots. By the end of the tournament, Burns trailed by five strokes. He had lost a nine-stroke swing, fell to T7 and lost roughly $1.8 million.
Burns probably won’t worry about all the cash he lost. He’ll most likely stay up later than he wanted to, thinking about how he lost out on the chance to hold the U.S. Open trophy at Oakmont in front of hundreds of cameras.
After the crushing defeat, Burns wasn’t extremely emotional in his flash interview. He was emotionally OK, as one reporter put it, and willing to talk to reporters.
“I went out there and gave it the best I had,” Burns said. “Golf’s a hard game, especially on this golf course. At the end of the day, I can hold my head high.”
The positive thing for Burns is that he is only 28 years old and will likely have many more shots on a Sunday to win a Major Championship. He certainly has the game for it, as he was the leader coming into Sunday and one of the few players to have multiple rounds under par on the first two days.
But for Scott, Sunday may have been his last chance at winning the second Major Championship of his career.
Scott is 44 years old and only getting older, like the rest of us. It’s hard for players his age to compete at Major Championships. Phil Mickelson won the PGA Championship at the age of 50 in 2021, so it is still possible, but not likely, for Scott.
He was the oldest player in the field to make the cut and would have been the second-oldest champion in the history of the U.S. Open if he were to have won. Next year, if he were to win in Shinnecock Hills, he would be the oldest.
On Sunday, the Aussie completely melted down, shooting a 9 under par — nine strokes worse than his first and second rounds, when he shot even-par, and 12 strokes worse than the third round, when he shot 3 under par. Scott ended his 96th Major Championship start T12, when he began his Sunday T2.
It was a Major Championship Sunday free fall for both Burns and Scott — both looked and felt similar as fans watched them walk down the 18th fairway, but the stories of the two are completely different.
The post The losing end of the Major Championships appeared first on The Pitt News.