Signature Scroll: Wyndham Clark wins U.S. Open in surreal scene

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Another major in the books. It was a wild one ...

Wyndham vs. the world

SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — The scene was quite surreal.

A security official summed it up nicely as they stood next to me at the 14th tee box. “I can’t throw out a whole grandstand,” they said.

Watching Wyndham Clark navigate a raucous, sometimes hostile, crowd at Shinnecock Hills gave me an entirely new appreciation for the now two-time major champion. Clark said it felt like he was playing an away Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup. After walking much of the final round, I’d (mostly) agree.

This was no Bethpage Black, but it took a heck of a lot of stones from Clark to subdue the crowd’s obvious lean. Each clutch par save was met with groans. Every approach that rolled off the green was relished. Be it the big lead the fans wanted to watch dwindle for some added drama, Scottie Scheffler's push for the Grand Slam or any personal feelings toward Clark, he was not the fan favorite.

As the day went along, it became clear that the only way Clark would win them over was if he gave them no choice. That was the thought that popped into my head after Clark poured in an immense 25-foot birdie at the 16th hole to go up by two strokes. For the first time, the cheers drowned out the jeers. The crowd had no choice but to respect him.

Clark’s final-round performance earned him that. The American held off a hard-charging Sam Burns and stared down the world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who was chasing the career Grand Slam. That’s some heady stuff worthy of incredible respect. So, too, is becoming a two-time U.S. Open champion.

Professional golf is more fun when Clark is involved. That much was clear this weekend. His shot into the 16th hole on Saturday was fantastic. His relentless ability to get up and down from wild spots was a feat. His fist pump at the 16th on Sunday and the show of emotion will live on.

“He had some stones down the stretch,” said Scottie Scheffler. “He showed kind of what he's made of there.”

That will be my lasting takeaway.

Playing through

• 🧠 There’s a lot more to Wyndham Clark’s story, much of which started at Oakmont last year. I went into all of it in my Sunday night column. How Clark ‘brainwashed himself’ (in a good way) and won the U.S. Open…
• 💔 Sam Burns fell just short. My colleague Will Gray wrote about Burns’ heartbreak ...
• 🌬️ Shinnecock Hills "won the battle" over Rory McIlroy, the Masters champion said …

Grand Slam slips away

There have been many tournaments over the last few years in which Scottie Scheffler has fallen short and reasoned that the losses were due to a few good putts that just missed. Often, that feels like an oversimplification.

Watching his back nine at Shinnecock, it wasn’t this time. He struck the ball beautifully, and I expected each of the birdie putts at the 11th, 12th and 13th to fall. By his reaction, he did too.

But that’s golf. They missed; Scheffler lost by four strokes, finished tied for fourth, and now the waiting game begins. Chasing the career Grand Slam has tormented many. At the start of the week, I wondered if it would torment Scheffler. Anyone who has pursued the feat has said it gets harder with each attempt, but I think Scheffler will be the outlier. Nothing about how he performed this week felt like the effects of heightened pressure.

Sometimes, the good putts just don’t fall.

See you at Pebble Beach next year, Scheffler.

Parting shots

• 🚱 After 2004 and 2018, there were questions about whether the USGA could host a U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills without setup issues. They answered that emphatically this week. The course peaked on Sunday, even in benign winds, and played exactly how you'd want down the stretch. It was firm and fast. Players were hitting wedges and forced to land them short of the green to let them bound up. It’s everything we hoped for.
• ⌛ Was this Rory McIlroy’s last chance to win a major at Shinnecock Hills? That came to mind as I watched McIlroy fall away on Sunday. At 37 years old, many of the historic courses that pro golf visits once a decade may not see McIlroy in his prime the next time we return. McIlroy wants to win at “cathedrals” of golf, and Shinnecock Hills is one. He will be 47 when the U.S. Open returns.
• ➖ Nothing gets me chuffed like a random, historic event. So, shout-out to Keith Mitchell, who shot exactly 70 every day this week. It was much more eventful than it sounds. I’ll never forget his 41-29 that he fired on Thursday. It’s also a great result for him. Mitchell’s previous best major performance was T20 at the 2023 U.S. Open. He had missed seven of 14 career cuts.
• ♥️ If you haven’t seen it, I would encourage you to watch Miles Russell pull his dad out of the crowd to caddie for him at the 18th. Cool moment on Father’s Day and the first final round of a major championship in Russell’s young career. There will be plenty more.
• 🇰🇷 Good on Tom Kim for remaining in contention until the end. It's a great sign to see the 24-year-old playing well in the biggest events again. His solo third earned him exemptions into next year's Masters and U.S. Open.