Golf majors are won with precision, poise, and occasionally, pure nerve. On a dramatic final day at Oakmont, J.J. Spaun delivered all three — but only after one of the roughest starts ever overcome in U.S. Open history. Spaun’s final round was less a march to glory than a rollercoaster of collapse and comeback, culminating in a 64-foot birdie bomb on the 72nd hole that sealed his first major title.
For a journeyman who had never contended seriously in a major before, Spaun’s win wasn’t just improbable — it was unforgettable.
Image source: J.J. Spaun via Instagram
A Nightmare Opening
Spaun entered the final round tied atop the leaderboard at even par, holding his own in a bunched field that included Collin Morikawa, Scottie Scheffler, and Tommy Fleetwood. But Oakmont, with its famously punishing greens and narrow fairways, doesn’t offer second chances. And Spaun looked like he’d squandered his first one early.
Over the first six holes, he bogeyed five times — on 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 — as errant drives and nervy putts left him reeling. His front-nine 40 (+5) dropped him four strokes behind the lead and seemingly out of contention.
“I felt like I was watching it all slip away,” Spaun later admitted. “Every time I stood over a shot, I was second-guessing myself.”
The Turning Point: A Storm and a Reset
At the 11th hole, rain halted play. What came next might have changed Spaun’s career.
The 96-minute delay allowed Spaun time to regroup in the locker room. There, he watched swing video, took a few deep breaths, and recalled advice passed along from Max Homa — who credited Tiger Woods for the original quote:
“Even if your game is shaky, walk like you’re the best out here. Play like it.”
Spaun did just that. The storm outside gave him space to quiet the one within.
The Back-Nine Charge
Once play resumed, Spaun re-entered the course with a different energy — relaxed, focused, unshaken.
On hole 12, a par-5, he drained a 40-foot birdie putt to stop the bleeding. He followed with another birdie on 14, this time from 22 feet. Now just two back of the lead, the momentum had clearly shifted.
Then came hole 17, the drivable par-4 where champions have risen and fallen before. Spaun hit driver, pitched to inside 15 feet, and buried the birdie putt. Suddenly, he held a share of the lead.
On 18, facing a slippery 64-foot putt across multiple breaks, Spaun let it roll — and watched in disbelief as it dropped.
“I wasn’t even thinking about making it,” he said. “I just wanted to lag it close and get out of there with a par.”
Instead, the putt dropped, and Oakmont erupted. His final round 72 (+2) brought him to −1 for the tournament — the only player to finish under par.
Beating the Best
Spaun’s triumph wasn’t a matter of others falling apart. Collin Morikawa made a valiant charge and finished at +1. Robert MacIntyre and Scottie Scheffler both stayed in the hunt but couldn’t match Spaun’s birdies down the stretch.
Oakmont, which saw only six players break par on Sunday, demanded more than great ball-striking — it demanded belief. And Spaun, despite everything, believed.
“I stopped looking at the scoreboard after the 6th hole,” he said. “That’s when I started playing my best golf.”
A Breakthrough in Every Way
Spaun’s win guarantees him:
- A five-year PGA Tour exemption
- Automatic invites to the next five U.S. Opens, Masters, Open Championships, and PGA Championships
- A likely spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team
- His first-ever top-10 finish in a major
But more than titles and invitations, Spaun leaves Oakmont with validation. This was his 168th PGA Tour start. A respectable player, never a headliner — until now.
Tech Meets Trust: The LAB Putter Story
One under-the-radar hero of Spaun’s round? His LAB Golf Mezz.1 Max putter, a unique flatstick designed for stability and balance. Spaun switched to it earlier this year to steady his stroke — and it paid off big.
“Everything inside 10 feet felt automatic this week,” he said. “And when you believe in your putter, it frees up your whole game.”
The win has put both Spaun and the putter brand on the map — literally overnight.
Image source: Product imagery featuring the LAB Mezz.1 Max putter. All rights belong to L.A.B. GOLF
From Underdog to Unforgettable: Spaun’s Win Enters Golf Lore
The golf world loves underdog stories, but Spaun’s win isn’t just a feel-good fluke. His grit under pressure and clutch execution on the toughest back nine in golf suggest he may be here to stay.
Now 34, Spaun is playing the best golf of his life. With his confidence surging and a spot on the Ryder Cup team likely, he has a chance to ride this moment into a career-defining stretch.
From five bogeys in six holes to four birdies in the final seven, J.J. Spaun’s U.S. Open victory at Oakmont was a modern classic — a reminder of what’s possible in golf when talent meets tenacity, and when belief outlasts panic.
It was messy, thrilling, improbable, and magical — just like the game itself.
And that putt on 18? It didn’t just drop into the hole. It dropped Spaun into history.
